Fractured Moonlight on the Sea
by coldnovemberrain
Summary: She knew he was bad for her, but still she was drawn to him. How will they cope with all the upcoming events? Starts at the first book of the series. TheonxOC
1. Bows and arrows

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA**

_Bows and arrows_

The King's Party slowly assembled in the heart of the courtyard of the Great Keep. The party counted hundreds of wagons, all guests whom were to stay at Winterfell. Kaelyn Whitehill had never seen so many carriages in one place. There seemed no end to the long line of riders and carriages, all following each other in a perfect line. In the front of the party, the Royal family was found, surrounded by their ever so loyal King's Guard. Behind them rode knights, septa's, handmaidens, it seemed as if they had brought the whole of King's Landing with them

All houses of the North were gathered together in the courtyard, watching the Royal guests arrive from the South Gate. The Baratheon's were strangers to Kaelyn, having never seen them before. She always wondered if Cersei Lannister was as beautiful as they all said.

Kaelyn watched closely as, what undoubtedly had to be King Robert, ascended his horse. She had never expected the king of Westeros to be so fat. The king immediately made his way over to Eddard Stark, who greeted each other eagerly. She knew that they had been old friends and had fought together in battle when Kaelyn was younger.

The door of the carriage swung open and Cersei Lannister stepped out. She wore her long and beautiful golden hair loose and was clad in a red and gold dress, the Lannister colors. The queen perfectly matched Kaelyn's imagination, although her grace seemed to be in discomfort by the cold of The North. Having never visited King's Landing before, Kaelyn could only imagine the big difference between the two places. It was getting colder and colder in the North, while summer was still present in the south of Westeros.

Behind the queen her two brothers appeared, Jaime and Tyrion. They were easy to spot, their golden hair immediately set them apart from all the Northmen around them.

Kaelyn couldn't wait for the large feast to start. They never had a royal guest before and she could only imagine the food being served. From across the yard her eyes met with Theon Greyjoy, a hostage of the Starks, while a soft smile formed in his face. Kaelyn rolled her eyes and looked away, hoping her father had not seen it. Theon had been after her for some time now, much to her fathers dismay who never liked men from the Iron Islands. He despised their Drowned God and the Greyjoy Rebellion was still fresh in his mind. He had always told her not to trust a kraken, so she didn't. She knew Theon had been with some women and she was not planning on becoming one of those women.

"Is that the prince?" Myrilla Whitehill asked her big sister.

"Yes" Kaelyn guessed. The boy Myrilla was admiring had the same gold locks as the queen had, it had to be Prince Joffrey. Kaelyn felt like there was something not right with him. Maybe it was the arrogance radiating from him, or the fact that he rode on his horse looking like he owned everyone. She looked down at Myrilla, noticing she was smitten by him. Kaelyn couldn't blame her, he was a prince after all and every little girl wanted nothing more but to be a princess.

The King and Queen disappeared inside the Great Keep, leaving the rest to making preparations for the big feast. Lady Catelyn Stark had insisted on everything to go perfectly.

* * *

The feast did not disappoint. Hundreds of candles had been lit and the smell of roast boar was making Kaelyn's mouth water. Because she wasn't of high birth she was seated in the back of the Great Hall. She did not mind, here she could mingle with her friends while she could observe the royal family unnoticed.

"The queen looks beautiful" Sera Fenn exclaimed. Kaelyn let her eyes wander to where the queen was seated. She did indeed look beautiful, although her expression was far from it. Cersei Lannister looked incredibly bored and uninterested, it was quite obvious she would rather by in King's Landing right now. The harsh cold of the North was probably nothing for her.

After everyone was seated, the food arrived. Kaelyn's nose had not betrayed her and she indeed had smelled roast boar. The boar was accompanied with fresh leeks and mashed potatoes and a glass of honey sweetened wine. The servants placed a plate in front of her. It was hard to contain herself from diving in, but Kaelyn waited patiently until everyone was given a plate.

Music was being played while they were eating, entertaining the royal guests. Every so often Kaelyn sneaked a glance at the queen and Lady Catelyn. They both looked very uncomfortable and Kaelyn was grateful she was seated in the back. She didn't have a taste for politics and she was glad she could do as she wished.

"Theon is looking at you" Sera whispered before softly nodding behind her.

"Again?" she sighed. Kaelyn turned around to see that indeed Theon was smiling at her. Rolling her eyes, she turned back around. "He doesn't have a chance with me. I know what he's like"

"What am I like?"

Kaelyn turned back around upon the sound of his voice. _Oh no_.

"I don't know, you tell me" Kaelyn snapped. She knew she were not to talk to him in such way, even though he was a hostage of the Starks, he was still a Greyjoy, which meant he was of higher birth than she was.

Theon smirked, like he often did. "Incredibly good looking, heir to the Iron Islands, a good archer and incredibly good at making love."

The latter made Kaelyn roll her eyes. Even though Theon was a hostage, he didn't act like one. The Stark had treated him well and he was just as much part of the Starks as Jon Snow was. Robb Stark even considered Theon a brother.

"Will you dance with me, my lady?" Theon asked, extending his arm. The music had changed and more guests were standing up to take the dance floor.

Kaelyn figured she couldn't decline. Even if she declined, Theon would find a smart way to convince her otherwise, as he always did.

"Excuse me, please" she said ever so politely to the people at her table before standing up. With her hands she straightened her purple dress, her house colors, and stepped over the bench. She took his hand and he let her through the Great Hall. To her relief more people had started to dance. From the corner of her eyes she could see Sansa Stark accepting Joffrey Lannister's invitation to dance, glowing happily.

Theon placed his other hand on the small of her back and pulled her closely to him. A little _too_ close if it were up to Kaelyn. Slowly, they shuffled to the music. She was never a skilled dancer, but to her surprise Theon was quite good.

"My father will kill you if he sees us together" Kaelyn warned. She tried to distance herself from him, but his grip was firm.

"Then we must make sure he won't" Theon replied, a mischievous sparkle in his eye. Kaelyn knew all too well what he was intending.

The music changed into something more up tempo and Theon immediately responded and picked up the pace.

"I'm not going with you, if that's what you are thinking" Kaelyn replied, turning her head to see where the rest of her friends were. The table were she was sitting was empty.

"My lord" Theon corrected, squeezing her hand softly to get her attention.

"If you want me to call you my lord, you should start treating me as a lady" Kaelyn challenged. "My lord."

"Do you think all the girls get to dance with me? I am treating you like a lady" Theon laughed. He was enjoying this little game they were playing.

Most of the time Kaelyn didn't know whether he was serious or not. She was very familiar with his womanizing ways, having seen it so many times before. She knew of his regular visits to the brothel in a village close by. Would he have danced with someone else if she had not been at the feast? There was no way to tell.

"Then you should know a lady does not give herself to someone this easily" Kaelyn wiggled her hand free from his and took a step back. This was the only dance from her he was going to have. "If you want more, there a girls who would happily attend to your needs."

She knew she was being a little harsh on him, but even if she wanted to, she could not be with Theon. Her father would not allow it and besides, he could never be with her, his birth was much too high for her.

_Does he know I am still a maiden?_ Kaelyn had never been intimate with a boy before. She had to be a maiden if she ever wanted to get a decent husband. "If a man wants an experienced woman, he should go to a whorehouse" her father had always told her.

Before Theon had a chance to speak, Kaelyn turned around and quickly made her way across the Great Hall. She noticed the royal family had already left and most of the guests were beginning to leave. She could only hope that her father wouldn't find out about this little dance with Theon.

* * *

Since a few weeks Kaelyn had been learning the basics of treating wounded men from Maester Luwin. There had been a growing need for nurses around Winterfell and it was her mother's idea for her to become a nurse. Kaelyn liked the idea, she had never been afraid of blood and if it meant she could help others, why not?

Today Maester Luwin had shown her a book where all the muscles inside the human body were described extensively. She had taken a real interest in the subject and she was very eager to learn.

While she was studying the pictures, taking them all up, they had brought in a man who had fallen from his horse. Kaelyn closed the dusty book and followed Maester Luwin to see exactly how he treated the man. She knew she could never be a maester, she was a woman after all, but she could still learn the basics for times like this. Maester Luwin could not possibly be at a few different places at once.

After some examinating, Maester Luwin came to the conclusion that the man had broken his foot. The man was riding along the edges of the Wolfswood and after hearing something, his horse had jumped and he fell off. Kaelyn brought the man some honeyed wine to ease some of the pain while Maester Luwin was setting his foot.

"Pay close attention now, Kaelyn" Maester Luwin told her as he was about to place a splint to keep his foot in place. Kaelyn did what she was told and bended over the shoulder of Maester Luwin to see exactly what he was doing.

"Do you think you could be able to do this?" Maester Luwin asked after he was done and had sent the man on his way back home.

"I think so" Kaelyn replied, trying to remember exactly what Measter Luwin had done. Putting a splint itself wasn't hard, putting the broken bone back correctly was more difficult. But with some practice she knew she would be able to do it.

"Good, the next one to come in will be for you then" he told her with a smile.

* * *

As she rode her horse outside of the castle's gates she spotted Bran Stark climbing walls that seemed to be impossible to climb. It made Kaelyn smile, the Stark kids seemed to be so happy around Winterfell, and she could not imagine Winterfell without their presence.

When she came home she had given her little sister a kiss and praised her for her needlework before taking her horse to head outside. She had always wondered how her sister could be so good at needlework, as neither Kaelyn or her mother had any patience for it.

She knew the Wolfswood could be a bit dangerous, as the name suggests, but Kaelyn had never encountered anything dangerous before. She loved to come there to think, to reflect on her day, to find some peace and quiet. Especially with the royal guests, Winterfell was packed and it was nice to be somewhere where she could only hear herself and her horse grazing on a patch of grass before her.

Securing her bay mare around a tree, Kaelyn retrieved a bow and arrow out of her saddlebag. By practicing out in the woods, nobody could see her failing. Besides, a woman in a dress with a bow and arrow was a strange sight, even Kaelyn herself had to admit. There was just something about releasing the arrow from your bow and seeing it entering the aimed target. Maybe it was so special because she most of the times missed her aimed target and was therefore pretty content with herself when she did hit the target.

With some dirt from the wet ground Kaelyn painted a bulls eye on a tree with her fingers. She took a few steps back and placed her feet so she wouldn't loose balance. After placing her arrow, she slowly pulled the string back as she lifted the bow. Kaelyn closed her right eye to aim the arrow the best she could. She let go to see the arrow whirling past the three, it wasn't even close of the target.

"Now I understand why you come here to train" Someone laughed behind her.

Kaelyn shot around, she didn't expect anyone to be here. No one could possibly know she was here except if they had followed her.

"You are doing it wrong entirely" Theon said, a smirk still covering his face. Kaelyn couldn't believe she hadn't heard him following her.

"Did you follow me?" Kaelyn asked him suspiciously. Why would he even want to follow her.

"The Wolfswood can be a dangerous place. You need protection" He replied, taking a few steps forward towards her.

"I can protect myself" Kaelyn said determined.

Theon laughed. "After what I just saw, I don't think so."

Kaelyn sighed. She knew she was not the best archer in Westeros, but she wasn't that bad. It was the wind that was sending her arrow in the wrong direction than she aimed for.

"Shut up, it wasn't that bad" Kaelyn said, retrieving another arrow from its shaft and placing it in the bow.

"Your holding it wrong" Theon smirked.

"If you know it so well, come and show me" Kaelyn sighed.

She could hear his footsteps and before she knew it Theon was standing closely behind her, placing his hands on her hips. "You should stand this way." His hands made her turn a few inches to the right, when he was content with her position, he moved his hands and placed it over her own hands. "Don't be so tense" he told her. "Take note of the wind and aim a few inches off, the wind will help you."

With Theon's help, Kaelyn aimed more left than her target and let loose of the string. The arrow soared through the air, straight in her target.

"You see?" Theon said. He let go of her hands so Kaelyn could lower the bow, but he did not move away.

She had to admit, it was nice of him to help her with the bow. And even though she did not like the fact that he had followed her, it made her feel a bit special. He did not have to follow her if he did not want to.

"Thank you, my lord" Kaelyn said the latter with a mocking tone, her back still pressed against his chest. "You can move away now."

Theon didn't. Kaelyn turned around herself, facing him, clutching her bow tightly. "Do you miss Pyke?" she asked out of nowhere. She didn't know where exactly the question had came from, and why she had asked it right at this moment.

Theon raised his eyebrows before answering her. "Not really, haven't been there for so long."

Kaelyn felt guilty for asking the question. She could never imagine how it felt like being taken from your own home to a place with people you did not know. Even though the Starks treated Theon like one of their own, he was still a hostage. A hostage who could be killed at any time.

"Please forgive me, my lord. I should not have asked the question" Kaelyn had to remember her courtesy.

Theon smiled faintly. "We have to get back, its almost getting dark."

* * *

Kaelyn was helping her mother bake bread when she had heard the news. Bran Stark had fallen from a tower when climbing. She couldn't believe her ears when she had heard it. She had never seen Bran fall and she never thought he would ever fall.

She gave her mother a kiss before rushing to Maester Luwin to see if there was any way she could help, but Lady Catelyn didn't want anyone but her family and the Maester near Bran, which was understandable.

Instead Kaelyn asked if she could help Maester Luwin himself. "I could use some wine, yes thank you" he replied gratefully.

Kaelyn hurried down to the kitchens, not wanting to disappoint her teacher. She fetched a cup from a shelf and filled it with the first bottle of wine she could find. Personally she preferred honey in her wine to sweeten it a little, but she had no clue how Maester Luwin liked to drink it. Deciding against putting anything in it, she took the cup back to his tower and placed it on his desk.

She knew she would be called out if Maester Luwin ever needed her and since there wasn't much to be done about Bran's condition Kaelyn decided to leave them all to it. If it were her child which was badly injured she wouldn't want any strangers poking around.

On her way home she passed Robb Stark, Jon Snow and Theon in the yard. They seemed to be training with swords, taking their minds off the recent events. In the corner of the courtyard Septa Mordane seemed to be comforting a very sad looking Sansa. Kaelyn reminded herself to go and pray for little Bran to recover, whole of Winterfell seemed to be shaken with the news.

"My lord" Kaelyn greeted Robb, nodding her head slightly.

Robb smiled back faintly, before getting ready to fight Jon Snow with their newly forged swords.

"Kaelyn, wait"

Kaelyn turned around to face Theon, quickly looking around to see if her father was in sight. She smiled, waiting for him to speak.

"If you want, we could practice more often" He suggested. "In the Wolfswood, so your father won't see"

"Yes" Kaelyn surprised herself with her reply. "I'd like that."

"So I'll see you tomorrow around midday?" Theon smiled.

Kaelyn nodded. "I'll be there."

Theon turned around to rejoin Robb and Jon, who were still fighting. By the looks of it Jon was winning.

She also turned around to continue her path home. _What have I gotten myself into?_ Kaelyn could only imagine.

* * *

**A/N: So I've pretty much fallen in love with Theon and I will defend him until my death, lol. This is my first Game of Thrones fanfic and it's so much harder to write than any other fanfic I've ever written. If I made any huge mistakes, please correct me, I'm not a native English speaker J Also, please review! I love reading them and they motivate me to continue writing. Enjoy!**


	2. Warning

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA  
**_Warning_

When Kaelyn woke up, she found herself nervous. Lying still in her bed, covered with furs, she couldn't stop thinking about her upcoming training session with Theon Greyjoy. She wondered what it would be like. She wondered what intentions Theon had. There was no way she could offer him the same the whores were offering him.? She was not a doll he could play with. Kaelyn could only hope he realized that.

After his proposal Kaelyn had gone to tell her best friend about it. Sera Fenn was more shocked about Kaelyn's response than about the actual proposal itself. "I can't believe you said yes" her friend told her. "There is no turning back now."

Kaelyn hated the fact that everyone was acting as if she had made a huge mistake. They were just two friends going to train, nothing more. Yes, there was some tension between them but she knew she could never mean more to him than a friend. It was simply not possible.

Upon hearing the call from her mother, Kaelyn rose from her bed and quickly dressed herself in a simple blue dress. It wasn't embroidered or anything, but it was comfortable. She found it was difficult to ride a horse in the pretty dresses as they were often made of very stiff fabric.

"What are you up to today?" her father asked abruptly, when she entered the room. He was breaking his fast on bacon and eggs.

Kaelyn took a breadroll and also eagerly dived into a fried egg. "Nothing much" she replied after taking a bite of the roll. "I'm going to see if Maester Luwin needs help."

"And after that?" Her father raised his eyebrows and put down his own roll.

"I don't know yet, father!" Kaelyn exclaimed.

"Remember you have to help your mother with dinner tonight. Don't forget, Kaelyn!" He warned her before standing up. Her father was a blacksmith and there were a lot of orders of swords and armor waiting for him. "I'm off" he gave his wife a kiss. "And I'll see you tonight, young lady." Her father gave her a nod before leaving the Whitehill home.

Kaelyn too nodded and finished her breakfast. Before heading out the door she quickly breaded her hair, finishing it off with a white ribbon. "Bye, mother" she shouted before she headed to Maester Luwin. Last night she had prayed for Bran and she wondered if the Gods had listened to her.

"Good morning" she greeted Maester Luwin upon arrival. He was seated behind his desk, answering letters and attaching them to the ravens. Kaelyn feared the worst. If Bran was conscious again, Maester Luwin would undoubtedly be with him.

Maester Luwin smiled faintly and greeted her back. "No change?" she asked carefully.

"No" he replied, continuing writing the note before attaching it to the last raven.

* * *

The morning went by fast. There was not much Kaelyn could do, so decided to spend her time wisely by studying one of the old books she had found in Maester Luwin's cabinet. This one described the use of different herbs and where she could find them. Maester Luwin himself checked up on Bran every so often, but always returned with the same news. Kaelyn wondered why the Gods were so cruel, Bran was an innocent child, he had to live, he deserved to.

"Kaelyn, before you go" Maester Luwin turned to her before she could leave. "Be careful later on, yes?"

Kaelyn was not entirely sure what he meant. She raised her eyebrows, did he know about the training session with Theon?

"Theon. Be careful with him" he continued explaining.

She wasn't sure if everyone had a distorted view of Theon, or if he was genuinely like everyone told her. So far she couldn't say a bit thing about him. Yes, he was a bit pushy at times, but he was kind to her. Not many other men would offer to help a lady with a bow and arrow. Most of them would think it was not proper, ladies should sew, cook and bear children, nothing more. _I can't believe I'm defending a man I didn't even like a few days earlier_.

"I will" Kaelyn assured him. She promised herself she wasn't going to fall for his little tricks.

* * *

Especially after everyone warning her, Kaelyn felt nervous when she arrived in the Wolfswood. She had waited for the perfect time to ride, making sure that no one could follow her. Occasionally she looked behind her to see if she was alone, if Theon could sneak up on her, anyone could.

"I didn't think you'd come" Theon said, as Kaelyn secured her horse to the same tree as yesterday.

"I told you I'd be here, I always keep my word" she replied, walking towards him.

He had already set up a few targets to aim at. They were all painted on different trees, some closer, some further away. Even though she had brought her own bow, he had also brought his. Kaelyn figured they would be practicing with his, so she did not retrieve her bow from her saddlebag.

Theon smiled at her surprise, which made her smile as well. There was something about his smile that was really infectious.

"Where do we start?" Kaelyn asked. She was ready to train, ready to get better at this. Who knew when it would ever come in handy?

He walked towards her, picking up his bow on the way. "Let's see what you can do without my help" Theon smirked.

Kaelyn took the bow from him. To her surprise it was a lot heavier than her own bow. She clutched the bow tightly and tightened her muscles to keep the bow straight. Swiftly she put the arrow in place and she remember what Theon told her yesterday about the placement of her hips. Drawing the string backwards, Kaelyn decided to go for a target roughly at the same distance as she normally practices for.

She let go of the string and the arrow darted through the air. It didn't hit the target, but she did not miss the tree this time. The arrow had pierced in the tree just a few inches below where she had aimed.

She turned around to see what Theon was thinking. He had moved his hands inside his fur cloak to shelter them from the cold. "Not bad" he admitted.

"Thank you" Kaelyn considered his remark a compliment. It was amazing to see how just a few changes made such a difference.

"If you just raise your bow arm a little, you should be able to hit the target" He explained, staying at a distance.

"Can you show me?" Kaelyn asked, raising her eyebrows slightly.

Theon's lips curled into a smile and he eagerly walked towards her. Unlike yesterday he stood opposite of her, instead of behind her. He uncovered his hands and placed her fingers where they should be if it were up to him, his eyes focused on her fingers.

His hands felt warm against her cold skin. Kaelyn could her heart feel pounding faster and faster upon his touch. _Stop it_, she told herself. _Stop this right now. _

Theon stepped back when he felt contend with the placement of her fingers and arms. The cold stung when he took his warm hands off of hers. Kaelyn tried her best to keep her arms still at the exact location as Theon wanted it.

"Release the arrow" he ordered, confident the arrow would go in the target.

Slowly and carefully Kaelyn released the string. Of course the arrow hit the target. How was he so good at this?

"Try that one" Theon pointed to one a little further away. "Remember what I've shown you."

Kaelyn had never shot an arrow so far away, but after Theon's instructions she felt confident she could hit this one. _Hips, arms, fingers_, she remembered. She even looked which way the wind was blowing and aimed a little further to the left so the wind would take her arrow to the muddy target painted on the tree.

Even after listening so carefully to what Theon had told her, she didn't take into account the fact that the tree was a lot further away than the previous one. For a moment the arrow soared, but a few feet in front of the tree the arrow went straight down, like a bird trying to fly for the first time and failing miserably. Kaelyn had hope that this one would be the one to go straight in, but nothing was ever in her favor. It seemed as if Theon was not telling her something so she could not do it without him.

Kaelyn could hear Theon trying to conceal his laugh, but she had still heard him chuckle. She shook her head and lowered the bow, ready to give up.

"Don't give up now" Theon spoke, stepping forward. "You did it perfectly, you just need to add some power if your shooting further away."

"I can't do it without you" Kaelyn replied, sighing. "I can't do it without your help."

Theon came to stand behind her, just like he had done yesterday. "Try it again" he said, handing her another arrow before placing her hands on hers.

Without thinking Kaelyn released the arrow and of course it hit the target.

"You see you can do it" Theon spoke softly close to her ear. Kaelyn could feel his warm breath on her skin. It tickled. Somehow it felt amazing. _Don't fall for his tricks_, Kaelyn reminded herself. So many people had warned her today, but it was hard to contain herself. She could't even get herself to step away.

"You helped, it does not count that way" Kaelyn smiled softly.

"I didn't help, that was all you" Theon assured her, his breath still lingering on her skin.

"He's trouble, Kaelyn" her best friend had told her. "Never trust a kraken" her father had told her. "Be careful with him" everyone else had told her. How could she listen to them if she did not see what they meant?

"It's getting dark soon" Kaelyn said. "We have to get back."

"We could also just stay here" Theon replied, his hands sliding on her hips, pulling her close to him.

"My father will be worried if I don't return soon" Kaelyn gasped softly upon feeling Theon's hands on her hips.

"I don't care what your father thinks."

Theon loosened his grip so Kaelyn could turn around to face him. "I do care" she replied, noticing how blue his eyes were. _Blue like the sea_, she thought.

* * *

Softly, Kaelyn opened the wooden door in front of her, trying to sneak in unnoticed. They hadn't stayed out in the forest for much longer, but it was already dusk when she had returned home. She had never stayed out so late before. When she turned around she found her father seated on a chair in the kitchen, waiting patiently for her return.

"Hello, father" Kaelyn spoke faintly, closing the door behind her as soft as she could. Her mother and sister were probably already sleeping.

"You were out with that Greyjoy boy, weren't you" her father confronted.

Kaelyn didn't know how he knew, she had been so careful to make sure she and Theon wouldn't be seen together. _But then again, Maester Luwin also knew about their training session_. They had to be more careful in the future, it was as if the trees in the wood had eyes and ears, telling everything they saw and everything they heard to her father.

She doubted whether to lie about where she had been. She could tell her father she had been helping Maester Luwin with Bran all day, but Kaelyn was sure he would ask Maester Luwin if it were true. Her father knew she had been with Theon, he just wanted to hear it from her.

"Yes" she simply replied, locking her fingers together nervously. She had hoped it would have never come to this conservation.

"Have you not listened to what I have told you? Never tru-"

"Yes, never trust a kraken" Kaelyn sighed. She had heard it so many times before and yet her father never gave her a good reason why not to trust him.

"I don't ever want to see you with him. He is a hostage, treat him like one."

"I can make my own decisions, father. He's not a hostage in my eyes. He's a friend and he's nice to me. To be honest I don't see why you are so against him…" Kaelyn explained.

She knew she had said too much. Kaelyn could see the anger boiling inside her father. Roughly, he slammed his fast into the table, indicating she should really watch her words from now on.

"To him you are just some back alley whore who he is trying to bed. You are dishonoring yourself and our family."

The words stung. Did he really think that she was dishonoring her family?

"Please don't say that, father" Kaelyn could feel tears welling up in her eyes. Tears of anger, tears of sadness.

"I am telling you the truth, Kaelyn" he stood up from his chair and put his left hand on her shoulder, with the other he softly rubbed a tear off her cheek. "You cannot see him again."

"I can't promise that, father. I'm sorry" Kaelyn apologized. She wanted to spend more time with Theon. She wanted to prove everyone wrong. She wanted to prove that he was not the man everyone thinks he is. She had to.

Her father bowed his head and turned around. "Then I hope you know what you are doing…" he said as he disappeared in the darkness.

* * *

The following morning Kaelyn tried her best to avoid her father. She was not entirely sure what he had meant last night. She did know what she was doing and why was everyone doubting her?

She took an apple from the wooden bowl in the kitchen to eat on the way to the castle courtyard. Theon had told her Lord Stark had accepted the new position as hand of the king and they were to depart for King's Landing this morning. It would be strange not seeing Lord Stark around Winterfell, but being the hand meant you were a very important person in Westeros.

The courtyard was packed with people all wanting to say goodbye to the Starks who were leaving. Not only Lord Stark, but also his daughters Sansa and Arya were departing as well. The royal family had left the day before. Kaelyn imagined they were eager to get back to the warm weather of King's Landing.

Right at the front of the party stood Jon Snow, who was leaving for the wall. Robb Stark must've been sad to see his half-brother leave. Kaelyn doubted whether Theon would miss him, they never really got along well.

With Lord Eddard Stark gone it meant that Robb was the new Lord of Winterfell, which meant he had to grow up fast to perform his duties. He could not be a boy anymore, he had to be a man. She wondered if this meant changes for Theon as well, as seen as he was always close to Robb himself.

From across the courtyard she spotted her father standing next to Stark bannermen, a hammer in his right hand. For a split second their eyes crossed paths, but Kaelyn quickly looked away, not ready yet to face her father after the argument they had yesterday.

Slowly the party departed from the courtyard, following the kings footsteps on the Kings Road. With such a large party it would take quite a while for them to reach King's Land and she figured it would also take quite a while before they were used to the difference between the north and the south.

Kaelyn came as soon as she heard. Her mother had told her the news and she had heard it directly from a guard standing watch. Bran Stark had woken up.

Because of her good relationship with Maester Luwin, Kaelyn was allowed to see the young Stark boy. A few days earlier he was attacked by a mysterious man and Catelyn Stark had grown a lot more careful after that, the persons who were allowed to see him were limited.

She dodged the ever growing direwolf as she entered the bed chamber, carrying a bowl with fresh water and a vial of milk of the poppy. Bran was laying still in his bed, holding his mothers hand who was smiling happily. Kaelyn herself smiled too, it seemed as if the Gods had listened to everyone's prayer and made Bran wake up.

Before she patted Bran's forehead with a damp cloth, she looked at Lady Stark for approval to touch her son. When Catelyn nodded Kaelyn continued and softly patted his forehad, making sure the fever he had a few days before would not return.

"Maester Luwin will join you in a moment" Kaelyn spoke. She walked around the bed to give the vial to Lady Catelyn and disappeared out of the chamber, leaving mother and son together.

As she left the Great Keep of Winterfell she noticed a raven entering through a tiny hole in the massive structure. _Dark wings, dark words_, she remembered.

* * *

**A/N: Okay, I rushed the Bran Stark waking up thing a little bit, so it fit the story better, I hope you're okay with that. I watched the latest GoT episode and I'm drowning in my Theon feels. Enjoy this chapter and please review and I will see you next time!**


	3. In your eyes

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA  
**_In your eyes_

Kaelyn saw Robb going from practicing with wooden swords in the yard, to practicing at being a lord with a real sword hanging from his hip. Theon was never far from his side and she had not spoken to him in a few days, still remembering the words of her father.

As for her father, they had crossed paths various times during the past days, but both of them always looked away, trying to ignore the other. Especially during dinner time, when they had to face each other, there was tension hanging in the air and even her mother and sister didn't dare to speak.

Bran had been making great progress with every day that passed. Kaelyn visited him daily and luckily his fever had not come back. He was regaining his strength and was now able to pull himself up in bed, even though he had lost all his feeling in his legs.

Lady Catelyn left yesterday to attend to some business, leaving the responsibility of Bran's health in the hands of Robb and Maester Luwin. Kaelyn had seen a crow carrying a message entering the castle and she could only imagine what news the bird had brought with him.

Softly Kaelyn opened the massive wooden door, not sure if Bran was sleeping or not. Seeing as she was getting quite familiar around the castle, the guards let her pass without any hesitation. Upon entering the chamber she noticed that Bran was awake and both Robb and Theon were sitting next to him, a concerned look on Robb's face.

"My lord" Kaelyn greeted when she saw her new lord of Winterfell.

When her eyes met with Theon's she could feel her cheeks turning red. This was the first time she had seen him since their last training session and she was not sure what to tell him about her absence.

"My lady" Robb replied, standing up. "I'll leave you to it."

Robb smiled at his little brother before heading towards the door, Theon following closely. When he passed her she could feel his hand softly brushing hers. His skin felt soft and raw against hers and she couldn't help but smile.

When she door closed behind Robb and Theon, Kaelyn let her eyes fall on Bran, who was patiently waiting for her to do her job.

"You like him, don't you?" Bran asked as Kaelyn approached him. His direwolf lay down next to Bran, protecting him from anything evil that might harm him.

"Who, my lord?" Kaelyn replied absent mindedly. There were still some cuts on Bran's arms and legs which needed treatment everyday.

"Theon" Bran said, raising his eyebrows curiously. Kaelyn took Bran's right arm and started removing some of the dried blood with a wet cloth. Maester Luwin had made her a herb-paste which she needed to put on the cuts everyday. She had read in one of the books that this paste would prevent the cuts from getting infected.

"Yes" Kaelyn replied honestly, focusing on her job. Bran had never flinched when she cleaned the cuts. _The fall has made him strong_. "How do you know, my lord?"

"I could see it in your eyes" Bran Stark said. "I could see it in his too."

* * *

The rest of the day Kaelyn helped her sister sewing. Her sister had laughed at her poor skills, but they both enjoyed each others company. Kaelyn always considered family important, even if she did not see eye to eye with her father all the time. She knew she would still give her life for him and he would do the same, even after their fight about Theon.

"Will you get the pork for dinner, please" her mother had asked her while preparing supper for tonigt.

Kaelyn could use some fresh air and told her mother yes. With the royal party gone, Winterfell seemed a lot more empty. Or maybe it was the absence of more than half of the Stark family, Kaelyn did not know.

As she passed down the courtyard she saw Theon standing across the yard, right next to where her father was busy forging new swords. Their eyes met and Kaelyn couldn't help herself, she had to tell him about the argument with her father. With her head she nodded towards an alley opposite of where she was standing, hoping they could talk without her father seeing them.

Kaelyn could hear Theon's footsteps following her as she went in the alley. It was dark and gloomy and if Theon wasn't not here she would never come her on her own.

"We have to talk" Kaelyn started, facing Theon. "My father found out about our training sessions…"

Theon lowered his eyes. "Do you want to stop training?"

Kaelyn shook her head. "No, it means we have to be more careful."

She wasn't entirely keen on sneaking around with him, but she had to admit it was kind of fun. They had to think of a way no one could link them together, which meant they had to ride separately to the Wolfswood with a lot of time between them.

Theon smiled, like he often did. "That will not be a problem."

"If you go to the Wolfswood right now, I can meet you in an hour" Kaelyn explained. "I'll take a different horse so it will be more difficult to recognize me."

Theon nodded, still smiling. "Then I'll see you soon."

Theon had almost turned around when Kaelyn suddenly remembred. "Theon!" she said, making him turn around to face her again, while retrieving something from her pocket. "I made this for you." She could feel her cheeks turning red as she handed him the little piece of needlework she had made earlier that day.

"It's supposed to be a kraken, but it looks more like a Tyrell rose" she said a bit shyly while studying her own work. She simply did not have the sewing skills her sister had and creating a kraken with golden thread had proven to be more difficult than she imagined.

"I love it" Theon said, accepting her horrible work. As Kaelyn studied his face she noticed he was genuinely happy she had given it to him, even if the mighty kraken did not look like a kraken at all.

"I'm glad you like it" Kaelyn smiled.

* * *

After picking up the pork and dropped it off, like she had promised, Kaelyn borrowed a horse from Theon to ride to the Wolfswood. He told her she could pick any horse she wanted, so finally she decided on a black gelding which made her blend in with the rest of Winterfell.

During her ride to the Wolfswood she encountered no one and as far as she knew nobody had seen her. Her father was probably back home, wondering where she was. Kaelyn pushed her thoughts away and made herself promise not to worry about him for the time being.

Theon was already waiting for her, his bow ready in his hand. Kaelyn jumped of her gelding and secured him to the tree next to Theon's horse. "Did anyone see you?" Theon asked her once she was near him.

"I don't think so" Kaelyn replied, taking the bow Theon handed to her.

"What am I supposed to aim at?" Kaelyn said, noticing the targets on the tree had smudged away due to the rain. She figured Theon would've painted new ones on the trees.

"Don't know, choose something" Theon replied, his voice a lot colder than normally.

Kaelyn raised her eyebrows. "But I need a target, do I not?"

"It doesn't matter. Just aim and shoot at something."

The coldness in his voice was making her uncomfortable, had she done something wrong? Did he think her gift was stupid? He seemed to like it, had he changed his mind?

"Did I do something wrong?" Kaelyn asked carefully, wanting to find out why his mood had suddenly changed.

"No" Theon replied. He did not face her but instead stared away into the Wolfswood. Kaelyn wondered what was going through his mind right now. She wondered what had made him so bitter all of a sudden.

Kaelyn bit her lip, guessing that was the only answer she was going to get. She placed the arrow in the bow and shot at random, if she did not aim anywhere in specific, she could not miss could she?

"How was that?" she asked, maybe a little more blunt than she had intended.

"Good" Theon said, keeping his distance. Normally he would've laughed at her and he would show her how she should do it properly. He would press himself against her and place his hands over hers. Today he didn't.

"No it was horrible" Kaelyn told him. "I didn't even aim for anything."

"It looked good to me." Theon replied, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

She couldn't take this. Earlier that day he had seemed so happy with her needlework and the way he acted right now was the complete opposite. Kaelyn could not remember a moment where she had not seen Theon smiling.

She dropped her bow on the ground and walked to Theon, making sure not the break eye contact with him. "There _is_ something wrong" she started. "Please, tell me. I don't like seeing you like this."

"You wouldn't understand" Theon said frowning, his arms still crossed in front of his chest.

"I can try to understand" Kaelyn assured him. These past few days they had grown much more close to each other, she didn't want to throw it all away.

"Do you know what it's like to be a hostage?" Theon started to explain all of a sudden. "To live knowing you could be killed at any moment?"

Kaelyn had not expected this. She thought it was something she had done, but obviously his sudden feelings lied deeper than that. On the other hand she was glad he was trusting her enough to pour his heart out to her.

"And having the Imp tell you, you supposedly have turned lackey. You have turned into the squire of the enemy of my family. I never had a choice, my father gave me away!"

She didn't know how to reply. Kaelyn had always been lucky enough to have her family by her side, but Theon mostly grew up without his family. She never realized how hard it must've been for him.

"I'm sure he did not intend to offend you" Kaelyn tried.

"I'm sure he did" Theon replied harshly.

Kaelyn sighed softly and took both of his hands into her own hands. At first Theon was a bit hesitant, but eventually he removed his hands from his chest and let Kaelyn take them.

"Do you know what the problem is with people like the Lannisters? They need to insult others to make them feel better about themselves. They have no good qualities, but they wish they had. If the Imp's last name was not Lannister he would have been thrown off a cliff. He could only wish to be charming and strong and gentle like you. Someone like Tyrion is not worth it." Kaelyn explained. "But you are…"

A moment of silence fell and Kaelyn had to admit she never expected herself to say such things. For some reason she had grown protective over him. Everyone always jumped to conclusions when it came to Theon, he was often misunderstood. Kaelyn never knew why people always liked to remind Theon of his fathers rebellion, as it was clearly a subject he tried to avoid. Why they tried to remind him that he was a hostage, nothing more. Everyone needs someone around them who loves them, and Theon does not have anyone. The one thing she did know though was that everything she had told him, she had meant it.

"You really think I'm charming?" Theon smirked. That was exactly the answer Kaelyn had hoped for. He was smiling again and that made everything worth it.

"Maybe" she replied teasingly, letting go of his hands.

The second she let his hands go he moved them to the small of her back, pulling her more closely to him. "You are the first one who has been genuinely nice to me" Theon told her. "Nobody has ever made something for me before. Well, except the blacksmith in Winterfell who forges swords for me."

Kaelyn chuckled, feeling the butterflies in her stomach starting to flutter.

Suddenly Theon started to move his head closer to hers. The butterflies were uncontrollable and she couldn't help but to give in. She knew she wanted it as bad as he wanted it. She moved her hands to his neck, feeling the softness of it. It seemed as if time was slowed down and if it were up to Kaelyn, this moment could last forever.

Their lips moved closer to each and when they were just about to touch, Kaelyn heard a voice behind her.

"Theon?"

Kaelyn opened her eyes and sighed. As always her luck was not in her favor. Theon placed his head next to her and when he saw who was standing behind him, he quickly let go of her.

Kaelyn turned around to find Robb Stark waiting for them, his eyebrows raised and a playful smile on his face.

"My lord" Kaelyn greeted him, even after what he just saw, he was still her lord.

"Kaelyn" Robb replied, still smiling. "Theon, I need you to come with me."

"Of course" Theon said. "Same time, tomorrow?" He turned to Kaelyn, raising his eyebrows to await Kaelyn's answer.

Kaelyn looked past Theon to Robb. Her father did not know about her feelings towards Theon, he had already made it pretty clear what he thought about them as friends, let alone as something more.

"I will keep my mouth shut" Robb replied.

Kaelyn nodded gratefully. "Same time, same place" she then told Theon.

* * *

**A/N: So I notice the chapters are getting shorter each time, I will try to make the next one longer! Of course Robb has to come in and ruin it ;) Better luck next time! Hopefully you enjoyed it and please review :) **


	4. Departure

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA  
**_Departure_

Robb came rushing in, his little brother in his arms. Kaelyn quickly put her books aside and stood beside Maester Luwin's side, ready to help him if needed. "What happened, my lord?" Kaelyn asked after seeing the cut on Bran's leg.

"Wildlings" Robb Stark replied, putting his brother down on the table, so Maester Luwing could examine him better.

Bran did not seem to be shaken up much. Because of his paralyzed legs he did not even feel the cut up his thigh so Maester Luwin did not need to sedate him before stitching up the wound. Kaelyn handed Maester Luwin the thread and a needle. She hoped she never had to stitch up a wound again, as seen as she could not even get a Kraken on a piece of fabric, let alone stitch a man's leg.

"Wildlings beyond the wall?" Kaelyn asked after it had sunk in what Robb had said. It had been quite a while since they had encountered wildlings.

Robb nodded. Kaelyn figured they had attacked Bran. She did not dare to ask anymore questions, seen as wildlings were quite a serious matter. They could raid, rape and kill an entire village if there were enough of them.

"All done" Maester Luwin smiled faintly. "Kaelyn could you carry Bran back to his chamber?"

"No that's alright, I'll take him" Robb offered, quickly picking him up.

"Yes, my lord" Kaelyn replied. She was still impressed with how strong Bran was. Even after all he had been through, he never complained of any pain and he was getting stronger each and every day. _Maybe if the Gods are good, he can have the feeling in his legs back_.

Her heart skipped a beat when Theon entered Maester Luwin's chamber, just seconds after Robb had left. Kaelyn noticed he was still carrying his bow in his right hand. Her guess about the Wildlings putting up a fight were confirmed at the sight of Theon clutching his bow tightly.

"Are you hurt?" It was the first thing that came to mind. If Bran was hurt, maybe he was as well.

"No. How is Bran?" Theon replied, putting his bow down on the table.

Kaelyn seemed to be the only one concerned, as Maester Luwin disappeared in the back, probably looking for herbs to speed up the healing process.

"He's fine. Are you sure you are?" Kaelyn said, stepping closer to examine him for any cuts or wounds. She did not care for her courtesy as she knew Maester Luwin knew about their training sessions. And for some reason he always noticed it when she was lying, so there was no point for trying.

"Yes, I'm sure" Theon replied.

"Robb just brought him back to his chamber, you can find them there" Kaelyn added.

"I will see you later" Theon picked up his bow and off he went, smiling at her one last time before he disappeared in the doorway.

On his way to the door, Kaelyn made sure if he was not limping or anything. She would not be surprised if he was hurt and would not tell her.

* * *

To her surprise Theon was waiting for her at the gates of Winterfell. Kaelyn's eyes widened, immediately searching for a alley where to could go to unseen. They would meet in the Wolfswood, not in Winterfell itself, she thought they had discussed that?

"What are you doing?" Kaelyn hissed. She jumped off her horse and made herself smaller to hide behind it.

"Come" Theon took her arm and led her through an alley to a garden of someone's home. Kaelyn had never been here before but as far as she could see the house looked deserted.

She raised her eyebrows, waiting for him to speak. What was the meaning of this?

"We can't go to the Wolfswood anymore" Theon said, not letting go of her arm.

Kaelyn paused for a moment. "Why…?" She did not understand what he meant. The Wolfswood was perfect, no one could find them and they had all the space they needed.

"The wood is not safe anymore. Wildlings attacked Bran, I had to save him." Theon explained.

The wildling was a little odd, she had to admit, but how was he certain it was going to happen again? And where were they supposed to train otherwise? Only the courtyard was big enough but they would definitely be spotted there. It was the Wolfswood or the yard, they had no other option.

"You can save me if we're being attacked" Kaelyn replied playfully.

"What if I can't" For once Theon was a lot more serious than she was.

"I'm sure you can." Kaelyn had seen how good he was with a bow and arrows. Besides, he also had his sword to defend them as well.

"Kaelyn" Theon sighed. "I'm being serious."

Finally he let go of her arm, as if he was giving up with convincing her. Immediately Kaelyn longed for his touch, his hand back on her arm, his hand on the small of her back. She realized he was being serious, actually serious. Was he really threatened by wildlings? Kaelyn never knew much about wildlings, having never encountered them before. She wondered what they were capable of.

"They are just wildlings…" Kaelyn tried again, not wanting to give up their perfect spot in the Wolfswood.

"They are dangerous. They could kill you" Theon tried to convince.

"And would you care if they would kill me?" Kaelyn suddenly blurted out.

Theon furrowed his brows and moved his gaze to the ground. "Yes. You know I would."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that" Kaelyn apologized. She wanted Theon to say it, to say he cared about her. However she did not intend to ask it so bluntly.

"We'll need to find a new place to practice" Theon said, as if he was ignoring Kaelyn.

"You still want to practice?" Kaelyn smiled faintly.

"Yes, I do. I can't let you handle a bow like that, you need more practice" he teased.

* * *

The following morning Maester Luwin was busy teaching Kaelyn everything about the ravens. How she should tend them, feed them, attach notes, everything. She had never liked the darned creatures and they did not seem to like her either. When Luwin attached a note, they sat still, not making a sound, but when Kaelyn did it they flapped their wings and the sound that came out of their beak was deafening.

"It's all about the energy you radiate" Maester Luwin explained. "If you don't like tehm, they know. If you are scared of them, they know. The trick is to be calm, to like them even if you don't deep down. Try it again."

Kaelyn tried again. _The birds are not scary, they won't bite you. Do they even have teeth? Gods, what if they have teeth?_

It obviously was not working, her thoughts were taking over completely. Before she had even reached the bird, it had already flown to the other side of the room. Kaelyn decided she liked horses a lot better. She had always been an excellent rider and she was not afraid of the animal, as she had developed a bond with her own horse quickly. These birds were a whole different story.

"Have you ever heard about the White Walkers, Kaelyn?" Maester Luwin asked, placing his hand on hers, indicating that she could stop trying with the ravens.

"I've heard about them, yes" Kaelyn replied, sitting down on a massive wooden chair next to Luwin. She expected he was going to tell an interesting story which she undoubtedly would want to hear.

"Well, according to a legend, the White Walkers first appeared during a winter that lasted a generation, one of the longest winters in history, they appeared during the Long Night. These creatures are supposedly to be dead, but they have risen. Risen to kill everything in their path. These are creatures to be feared. Creatures, I thought never existed. I examined the wildling woman yesterday and she told me the White Walkers are back. Do you think they are back, Kaelyn?"

"I don't know" Kaelyn answered honestly. It sounded so strange, a dead man walking. "Why would the wildling lie about it?"

"To scare us? To warn us? No way to know but to wait for them" Maester Luwin responded, a soft smile on his lips. He leaned forward and attached a note he had written earlier to a raven and sent it on his way, without any hassle.

"I did not know they had taken a prisoner?" Kaelyn suddenly realized. Neither Robb nor Theon had said anything about a wildling woman.

"Her name is Osha. Theon had taken her."

* * *

The only place they could meet up without being sure that her family will not see her was in Theon's chamber. It was not exactly the place she would have chosen, but she did not have any other choice. His chamber was located close by Robb's chamber, so before knocking on Theon's door, Kaelyn made sure the hallway was completely empty. She doubted no one had seen her, even the walls had eyes and ears in Winterfell.

Theon opened the door for her, smiling as always. He stepped aside to let Kaelyn in. To her surprise his chamber looked a lot different than she had expected. The room was very neat and organized, not a speck of dust to be found. Kaelyn herself had to share her chamber with her little sister and she found it so hard to keep it clean.

"I did not expect you so soon" Theon closed the door behind her.

"I can go if you want?" Kaelyn asked, not wanting to be an annoyance to him.

"No, please stay." Kaelyn loved his playful little smile, it made her smile as well.

"I heard you had taken a prisoner yesterday" Kaelyn confronted, tracing the lines on the wooden table with her fingers.

"I did" Theon comfirmed.

"A wildling?" She was desperate to find out who exactly this woman was.

"Yes, a wildling woman."

"What's her name?" Kaelyn asked.

"Osha" Theon replied. "What is this? An interrogation?" He smiled again.

"No, just wondering" Kaelyn avoided his gaze. "Did you do anything with her?"

"Like what?"

Kaelyn frowned. "Nothing particular. Things you do with… prisoners."

"Are you jealous?" Theon confronted her.

Gods, she _was_ jealous. Kaelyn did not want to see him with another woman. She feared he had been with that wildling woman. What was happening to her? She did not own Theon, he was a grown man and he could do as he liked.

"No." Kaelyn answered stubbornly. She was lying and he knew it.

Theon raised his eyebrows and smirked. Kaelyn could see he was enjoying this. "Are you sure?" he asked her.

"Yes" Kaelyn replied fiercely, even though her heart screamed 'no'.

"I have to tell you something." His face went serious. "Robb is riding to war, and I will be accompanying him…"

Kaelyn's heart dropped. "What?" she managed to stutter.

"A letter from Sansa reached us, asking us to bend a knee to Joffrey. They took Lord Stark prisoner. I have to go, I have to defend the North."

"When will you leave?" Kaelyn asked. This came as a total surprise to her. Maester Luwin never told her about any letter and she knew he had read it as well.

"Tomorrow evening" Theon replied softly.

Kaelyn's eyes widened. "Tomorrow?" she repeated in disbelief.

Theon nodded. "Robb's bannermen will arrive tonight. I'm sorry Kaelyn, but I have to go with him."

Even though Kaelyn did not want Theon to leave, she did understand why he had to. He had to fight by Robb's side. If you did not know better you'd think they were brothers. She wondered how life would be like without him. She had grown used to their training sessions and his presence. Besides, with Robb gone it meant there were only two Starks left in Winterfell, Bran and little Rickon. She could scarcely remember how it was to have them all together in one place. The King had changed everything when he asked Lord Stark to be his hand.

"I understand" Kaelyn said. "I could go with you. I'm almost finished with training, I could be a nurse!" The idea did not sound so bad. She knew everything there was to know about treating wounds, and she knew there was no war without casualties.

"No" Theon replied fiercely. "I want you to stay here. You could get hurt, or worse. I want to see you when I get back."

"If you come back." Kaelyn mumbled. There was no denying that there was a chance he would not return.

"Don't think like that." Theon moved closer and put his hands on her waist, pulling her towards him. "I will come back. I promise, Kaelyn."

Kaelyn pressed her face against his chest. Dreading the moment he had to leave. _Don't make promises you can't keep_, she thought, but she did not dare to say it out loud.

* * *

It was as if the King had arrived all over again, instead this time multiple banners flew in the air instead of the stag of House Baratheon. Kaelyn did not even recognize all the banners, there were so many. She did recognize the flayed man of House Bolton, the white sun of House Karstark and the moose of House Hornwood. Kaelyn made a mental note to study the books which told her all about the houses in the North more often, you never know when it might be handy to recognize a certain banner.

Kaelyn stood in the back, watching everything closely. Theon leaving Winterfell suddenly became a reality. She wished she had dreamed it, but she never woke up. The idea of war seemed strange to her. She never lived through a war she could remember, so it was all very knew to her. At least her father profited from all the soldiers seeking newly forged swords and armory.

When the king had arrived in Winterfell, they celebrated with a great feast. Tonight would be the same, except this time they were celebrating the departing instead of the arriving guests.

Kaelyn had asked her mother for permission to wear her new dress. It was a dark grey dress with golden accents. For once she chose not to wear her own house colors, she liked wearing something else. Her sister had braided her hair elaborately and in return Kaelyn gave her sister one of her necklaces she loved so much. For Theon's final night in Winterfell she wanted to look special for him, even though she was not entirely sure if they were going to speak at all tonight. _He was going to say goodbye to me, was he?_

Together with her friend Sera, she entered the great hall of Winterfell. The feast had already begun, with a few courses already served, but they both did not mind. They sat down at the exact same table in the back as with the feast for the king, leaving a strange feeling in Kaelyn's stomach.

Kaelyn looked around the hall, trying to spot Theon, but she could not see him so quickly. As she was about to scan the hall for one last time she felt a hand hit her in the shoulder. Kaelyn looked to her left, raising her eyebrows. "What was that for?" she asked her friend.

"Stop looking for him!" Sera replied annoyed. She had made it obvious she never was Theon's biggest fan. Kaelyn could not convince her that he was different than everyone thought.

"No!" Kaelyn replied, just as annoyed. "This is the last night he is in Winterfell, I don't care what anyone thinks of him. Or him and me for that matter."

She was not letting anyone ruin their last night together. Well, if she could find Theon that is, he was simply nowhere to be found.

"Kaelyn, I'm sorry" Sera apologized. "Just forget what I said. Will you come dance with me?"

Kaelyn forgave her friend, there was no point in arguing about it, after tonight she was not going to see Theon anyway. _And maybe dancing will get my mind of things…_

She followed Sera to the middle of the room, where already various couples had begun the dance. Kaelyn found a partner in the arms of Robett Glover, who had already consumed a few cups of wine. Luckily for her, he never shut up when talking to her, as she was not in the mood to talk.

After a while both the music and the dance changed. Everyone was supposed to switch partners every so often and this time Kaelyn wound up with Robb Stark himself. Her lord was being as lovely to her as always. He thanked her for taking care of Bran. "It was the least I could do, my lord" Kaelyn said smiling. It was nice to see that her work was being recognized.

"Will you keep Theon safe?" Kaelyn blurted out. Quickly she added an "my lord" to her sentence.

"I will try my best" Robb said. "Would you care if he got hurt?" His face turned into a smirk, something she had not seen often since he had become a lord.

"Do I really need to answer that?" Kaelyn replied, trying her best not to blush.

After Robb she danced with Donnel Flint. She had never met him before, but after a quick introduction he told her was also off to fight for Robb against the Lannisters. "I will pray for your save return, my lord" Kaelyn had told him politely. He had thanked her just as politely before Kaelyn took the hand of her final dance partner.

She gasped when she saw who it was. "Where have you been?" Kaelyn asked him.

"I had to pick up something" Theon replied, sliding his hand down to the small of her back. "This is just like the night of the king's feast."

"Except I did not particularly like you back then."

"You did not?" Theon said pouting.

"I do like you now" Kaelyn teased. She enjoyed the feeling of his hands on her, it was definitely something she was going to miss.

"Your father is in this hall…" Theon said after they danced a few more rounds. The music had changed again so there was no need in switching partners anymore.

"I don't care" Kaelyn stated. To be honest, she really did not care. Her father could be mad with her all he wanted, if Theon did not return this could be the final time they were ever see each other, in what way could he punish her?

"Good to know" Theon smiled.

_That stupid smile_. Kaelyn knew she was going to miss that infectious smile of his most of all.

* * *

"It's getting colder each day" Kaelyn said when they stepped outside, all bundled up in her cloak.

"Yes, winter is coming" Theon recited the words of House Stark. "I've got something for you."

He took her hand and led her through the castle towards his chamber. Kaelyn's stomach began to flutter when she stepped inside. The room was completely empty, besides from the bed standing in the corner. She couldn't help but wonder what he had in store for her.

Theon closed the door and retrieved something that he had hid behind it. "I want you to keep practicing when I'm gone. Just remember everything what I've told you." He handed Kaelyn the package.

Kaelyn blushed as she tore off the brown paper that covered it. _A bow_. "It's perfect" she said gratefully. She lifted the bow to look at it from a different angle. The longer she looked at it, the more beautiful it became. It even had a little krakens carved into it. _This way Theon would always be with her and would always protect her, even though he was not with her physically._

"I'm glad you like it, I had it made specially for you."

"I love it. Thank you, Theon." She extended her arms and pressed Theon closely to her, making sure she did not hit him in the head with her new bow.

She felt Theon distancing himself a little, bringing his head right before hers. "I am going to miss you" he whispered before leaning closer to her. Adrenaline took over completely as Theon let his lips meet Kaelyn's. She could not quite describe the rush she was feeling, but she wished it was never going to stop.

Kaelyn crossed her arms behind Theon's neck, still clutching her bow tightly. His lips felt so soft and warm against her and she could taste a tiny bit of wine still lingering on his lips. She could feel his hands sliding up and down her lower back and all she could do now was wish for the moment never to end.

After what felt like an eternity, Theon broke off their kiss. What had seemed like a dream became reality again. "I will miss you too" Kaelyn said. "But we can never be together. You're the heir to the Iron Islands, I'm a nobody." Since Theon was leaving she had to face the truth. As desperate as she was to be with him, it was simply impossible.

"You are not a nobody" Theon stated. "I don't care about your birth. When I'm a lord it won't matter, I can do what I want."

"My father will never give me away" Kaelyn said. He probably already had someone else for her in mind.

"I can convince him" Theon said determined.

"Yes, you can try. When you come back you can try" Kaelyn sighed. "I'm going to miss you Theon Greyjoy. Please return to me in one piece."

* * *

**A/N: I really enjoyed writing this chapter! So this fic also follows the series loosely, and next chapter will be ending with the beginning of season 2. I also wanted to say up front that I will not be following the whole story line of A Dance With Dragons, I will definitely change a lot of it. So if you have not read A Dance With Dragons, but if you are following season 3 of GoT, you will be fine as I'm not going where ADWD is going. I ****_will _****follow a bit from season 3, though. But of course I will warn you for any spoilers before hand. Enjoy reading and please review :)**


	5. Arrival

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA  
**_Arrival_

Kaelyn stood outside Bran's window everyday. Waiting for the armies to come back, hoping the men would come back in one piece. His window looked out over whole of Winterfell and beyond. Even though she knew it was too soon for them to return, she could hardly wait for it.

Bran was not allowed to ride his pony in the Wolfswood anymore and Kaelyn herself had not come there since her last training with Theon. Sometimes she wanted to ride to it and just think, like she did in the past. She didn't dare to, not after Theon warned her about the wildlings.

Since Theon left her father started speaking to her again, acting like Theon had never happened. In one way she did not mind, she longed for a time where things could go back to normal. Kaelyn missed having her dad around her. Yet on the other side she did not just wanted to forget what her father had told her about Theon. The lies about he told her about him.

It was safe to say Kaelyn had not expected she would miss Theon this much. They had grown so much to each other and it was strange to not have him around anymore. Luckily her time with Bran provided her some distraction. He always wanted to hear tales and Kaelyn would read to him from one of Maester Luwin's old history books.

With the majority of the men and soldiers gone, there was not much work for Kaelyn as a nurse. There was the occasional child who had fallen from his pony, or a baker who had burned his fingers to the hot ovens, but nothing special.

It was times like these, when it was all really quiet in Winterfell, that Kaelyn wished she would've gone with the army. She wished she did not listen to Theon and had gone with them as a nurse. It would be a perfect situation, there were wounded who needed treatment and she could be with him most of the time. Even though she knew her father would probably forbid her just like Theon did, it was something she deeply regretted now it was too late.

"It's growing colder everyday" Kaelyn mumbled while making sure the fire in Bran's chamber was still burning. She had picked up some extra furs from the unused chambers and piled them on top of him.

"Maybe we'll get to see the White Walkers!" Bran said, a little too excited. Kaelyn had told him stories about them and ever since he could not stop talking about them. He always liked things gory and scary.

"I certainly hope not" Kaelyn replied after getting the fire going again.

With Robb gone too it meant that every responsibility of Winterfell had fallen on Bran's shoulders. He was the new Lord of Winterfell and as far as Kaelyn could tell he was not happy about it. Being lord meant a lot of extremely boring and long meetings in the Great Hall. Maester Luwin talked them through the meetings most of the time, but Bran still had to be present, much to his annoyance.

"It would be interesting to see" Bran decided.

"Yes, that is true" Kaelyn agreed. It would definitely be interesting to see the White Walkers. She had only read descriptions about them and she wondered if they really looked like the books told her. Still, she was not intending on ever meeting one, as seen as death followed everywhere they went.

While Kaelyn was still poking in the fire, the wooden door opened and Maester Luwin appeared in the opening. "Please come with me Kaelyn" he ordered.

Kaelyn nodded, wondering why he wanted to talk to you. "I'll come back to check your cut later" Kaelyn told Bran, before leaving him with Hodor who was waiting outside.

She followed Maester Luwin to one of the empty bedchambers. There were so many in the castle, Kaelyn had no idea to who this chamber had belong to before. She closed the door behind them and turned to Maester Luwin and waited for him to speak.

"News reached from King's Landing" he began. "Lord Eddard is dead."

The news came as a shock. What did he mean, dead? How could Lord Eddard Stark have died? He was the most honorable and loyal man Kaelyn had ever known, there was no way he was dead. He was the type of person who should rule the Realm, not die.

"How?" Kaelyn stumbled.

"Joffrey. He chopped off his head. We have no news regarding what happened to Sansa and Arya."

Kaelyn took in a deep breath, wondering when he was going to break the news to Bran and Rickon. They would be devastated, she was sure. _Did Robb know? And Theon?_

"This means we are really going to war, aren't we?" Kaelyn said thoughtful.

"Yes, we are."

* * *

Kaelyn could not remember how many days had passed since Theon had left. Or since Eddard Stark had died. It was all so surreal. The time when they were all together in Winterfell seemed so far in the past, it almost seemed like it had never happened.

Winterfell had grown more grim since the news of Lord Eddard and the coming winter that kept on growing colder and colder. Everyone was concerned if the food they had was going to get them through the winter that had not even started yet.

Westeros was at war, with as many as 5 kings claiming for the Iron Throne. The smallfolk was at war too, a war for food, a war for survival. Kaelyn counted herself lucky, they did not have it as bad at Winterfell as in other castles around the North. She wondered how it was in Dorne, where the winter had not reached them yet. She had always wanted to go there one day, but first the winter had to pass. _And the war_.

Kaelyn wrapped herself in her cloak before stepping outside in the cold air. The cold stung her uncovered face, but she paid no mind to it, and kept on walking towards her home. On her way she stopped to look at one of the gates of Winterfell, still hoping Theon would be waiting for her like he was when they were supposed to go to train. But there was no one at the gates, not now, not yesterday and probably not tomorrow. She wondered if they were coming back at all.

Quickly Kaelyn got inside of her house, closing the door as fast as she could so no heat that was coming from the fireplace could escape. Her mother was able to cook the most amazing dinners with the little resources they had. She whiffed in the smell and guessed it was a stew, her dads favorite.

"I hope this winter is a short one" she said, rubbing her hands together near the fireplace .

"Everyone does, sweetling. Everyone does" her mother replied, filling up the bowls with stew.

Everyone eagerly dug into the stew and her mother had worked her magic once again. It tasted just as good as it had smelled.

"Kaelyn, we have a matter to discuss" her father told her after finishing his bowl and putting his spoon down.

Kaelyn also stopped eating, wondering what her father meant. She had not done something bad had she? She could not recall doing anything she shouldn't. Theon had been gone for so long now.

She looked at her mother and raised her eyebrows, but she would not give anything away. Moving her eyes back to her father, she waited for him to speak.

"It is time we talk about betrothal."

"We do what?" Kaelyn mouth fell open. This was definitely something she had not expected. Betrothal? They were going to marry her off?

"Yes, we may have found your match here in Winterfell. It could not be more perfect" her father smiled proudly while telling Kaelyn his plans.

"No." Kaelyn replied stubbornly. "I'm not going to marry him."

"Kaelyn, darling, you have not even heard who we have in mind for you!" Her mother said, placing her hand on her hand and giving it a little squeeze.

Kaelyn pulled her hand back.

"His name is Brandon Norrey. And he's the same age as you. He comes from a respectable family and I cannot see how this match would not work."

"I do not what to marry him." Kaelyn crossed her arms in front of her.

"You have not even met him" her father replied.

"And I don't want to."

"Why?"

She could not possibly admit that she loved Theon, she couldn't. Her father would have her head right here if she told him. But how could she marry another, when she promised to wait for him. She had been looking forward to the day Theon came back so much, she did not want to receive him with the news she was married.

"It's just that… I don't feel ready yet. I'm not ready to be a wife" she lied.

"Yes you are ready."

There was no room for discussion. She was going to marry Brandon Norrey, someone who she had never even met, whether she liked it or not.

"What if I refuse?" she tried one last time.

"You cannot. You will marry that boy Kaelyn. You will bear his children and you will be his lovely wife." Her father banged his fist on the table before standing up and walking to his chambers.

* * *

Kaelyn woke up with the sound of warhorns blowing loudly. She rubbed her eyes, not realizing what was going on. After waking up a bit, she noticed the warhorns had not stopped. Someone was blowing it in the yard, she guessed. Quickly she got dressed and walked in the kitchen to see if her father knew what was going on.

She had given in with her marriage proposal, realizing there was no way she could stop it. She were to meet her betrothed somewhere this week and if she was honest, she was not looking forward to it.

"What is happening?" Kaelyn asked her father who was looking out the window.

"Ironmen" he said with a tone of disbelief in his voice.

_Ironmen?_ For a moment Kaelyn had hoped the army had returned, but this was clearly not the case. If she did not know better she guessed Winterfell was being under attack.

Not thinking clearly, she opened the door to take a better look what was going on and walked outside.

"Kaelyn, stop! Come back!" she heard her father yelling, but he did not follow her.

Crossing the yard, Kaelyn saw ironman all around her. Their armor was decorated with a large kraken and they were all shouting, forcing people out of their homes onto the yard. She had guessed right, _Winterfell was under attack…_

She had no idea what was going on and when she turned around she saw that her family too was pushed on the yard. Since all the guards and soldiers left with Robb, there was no one to defend them.

When she reached the front of the crowd she still couldn't quite see what was going on. It was only when she heard Bran Stark speak, she saw what was happening.

"I've yielded Winterfell to Prince Theon" he spoke.

* * *

**A/N: So this one was shorter than the rest, but I really wanted to stop the chapter here. As always review #**

** Ellistriel: thank you so much for your lovely review. And your English is perfectly fine, I'm not a native speaker either! :D**


	6. Lost

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA  
**_Lost_

Kaelyn felt as if she was about the faint. It seemed as if the ground trembled beneath her when she laid her eyes on Theon. He had returned to her. The sight of him made her heart jump. Finally they could be together again. She wanted to run to him and kiss him, but she couldn't, not with all these people watching them.

Theon spoke to them, but Kaelyn could hear none of it. The only thing she could think of was finally be able to talk to him again.

"From now on, you will all address me as Prince Theon."

Kaelyn caught that bit. It was only then when she really started to look around. She had almost forgotten the Iron Men attacking them. When she looked closer to Theon's chest plate she realized he was wearing the same armor as the rest of them. _Where was Robb? Was he slain?_ She looked around but there was no Northerner to be seen. Not one. _Was Theon leading this attack? Why would he call himself prince?_ Her bliss changed into confusion. What was happening and was the man who stood before her really Theon?

She could not see if Theon had spotted her yet. Pushing forward through the crowd even more, her eyes finally met his. They stayed that way for a few seconds, before he turned to his men who were making sure everyone was cooperating. "And for you, no one will touch her." He pointed towards Kaelyn with his sword. "I will kill the man who will try."

His words scared her and intrigued her at the same time. He had never acted so hostile before, but yet this confirmed his feelings for her had not faded away. She turned around to look at her father. He was standing behind her at the far back of the crowd. She could see he had furrowed his brows while looking at his wife.

One thing Kaelyn knew for sure: she was very eager to find out what exactly Theon was doing.

Theon moved away from the elevated platform he was standing on and started heading towards the heart of Winterfell. Kaelyn followed him as quickly as she could, wanting an explanation for his sudden arrival.

"Theon" she hissed, struggling to keep up with his fast pace.

None of the men were following Theon which left them alone in the hallway. He stopped walking, causing Kaelyn to nearly bump into him, and turned around. "Come" he simply stated, taking her hand and leading her to his old chambers.

It had been a long time since she had been here, but nothing seemed to have changed except for the pile of dust laying on top of everything. Unlike his chamber, Theon had changed, his behavior was different than before.

When he closed the door, and to Kaelyn's surprise, locked it, he finally paid her some real attention. "I have missed you." He leaned in to kiss her but Kaelyn moved her head away so the kiss landed on her cheek. Even though she had waited for such a long time to kiss him again, she needed an explanation first.

"Is something wrong?" Theon asked, his hands on her hips.

"You tell me. What are you doing? Where is Robb?" she had a million questions to ask him, but no idea where to start.

"I'm not fighting with Robb anymore" Theon replied. "I'm fighting for my father now."

"Your father?" Kaelyn raised her eyebrows. But how? He had not been to the Iron Islands for ten years…

"Yes, my father. I have taken Winterfell for him so we can seize the North. I'm the Prince of Winterfell now. And if everything works out, you can be my princess." He tried to kiss her again and again Kaelyn turned her head away. This time she also softly pushed his hands away and turned around, trying to find the words to break the news to him.

"I can't. Theon, I belong to someone else." She swallowed before continuing. For some reason she was feeling guilty about her betrothal, even though she had no part in it. _I should've declined, I should've tried harder_. "I'm betrothed."

"You what?" Theon pulled on her arm so they faced each other again. "To who?"

"Oh, I don't know." Kaelyn had already forgotten his name. She could not care if she were to be married to a pig, she could not possibly develop a relationship with them like she had done with Theon.

"You don't know who you are going to marry?" She could hear a tone of disappointment in his voice.

"I have forgotten" she replied honestly. "I cannot change it. My father has arranged it and he is dead set on it to continue. I'm sorry."

"I'm the Prince of Winterfell, I can do what I want" Theon spoke confidently.

"You can't change this Theon. Sometimes there are things even beyond your reach."

"I have something to attend to" Theon said suddenly, giving her hand a little squeeze. He was already gone before Kaelyn had a chance to say something.

* * *

Kaelyn had gotten a bit better with ravens during the past weeks. She could attach a message without them flying away or flapping their wings in distress. Occasionally they bit her finger without warning, causing her to swear and giving the birds to Maester Luwin.

Today that exact same thing happened. Maester Luwin were to send ravens to Pyke, informing Lord Greyjoy of Theon's conquest. She was a little hesitant to send the ravens at first, she did not want this to become a real thing. There was still hope in her that this was all a dream, a joke, that it wasn't reality. But she had to come to grips that Theon really did take Winterfell.

It had been quite a while since she had last seen Maester Luwin, and Kaelyn started to wonder where he was. She left for Bran's chambers, maybe he was telling him another story to distract him from the Iron Men and maybe they lost track of time. But when she reached his chambers she opened the door only to find it was empty. Rickon's chamber was empty as well.

She could not think of any other places where they could be. Kaelyn started to worry for their wellbeing, they were not taking to the cells were they?_ Would Theon be that cruel?_

When she was just about to head off the stone stairs to the crypts and the cells, she heard a lot of noise coming from the courtyard. Curious what was going on, she peeked her head around the door to see where the sound was coming from.

And just when she thought it could not get any worse than it already had, she saw Theon preparing to kill Rodrik Cassel.

Rodrik had kneeled besides a wooden block and put his head on top off it. "The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword" he spoke.

Kaelyn slowly walked towards them. She saw Maester Luwin standing besides Theon, saying something to him. By the looks of it, Theon considered what Luwin had told him, but still he turned to Ser Rodrik.

"Any last words?" He asked, his sword already in his hand.

"Gods help you Theon. Now you are truly lost."

After Ser Rodrik spoke his words, Kaelyn turned around and ran back to Theon's chamber. She could not bear to see this. If he was really going to execute Rodrik Cassel, he _was_ truly lost. What had caused him to act this way? Kaelyn did not know.

When she opened his door and closed it behind her, she rested against it for a little while, feeling the tears starting to well up in her eyes. This was not the way she wanted Theon to return to her. She wanted him back together with Robb, but he had even abandoned Robb, someone who he considered a brother. _What is he doing?_

She waited for him to return. She lay down on top of his bed, not even bothered to cover herself with furs. She waited for the real Theon to return, not this Prince of Winterfell. _This is not him_, she told herself. _He is pretending_.

After what seemed like ages, the door opened and Theon stepped in the room. Kaelyn sat up, wondering which version of him she would get. "What are you doing here?" Theon snapped.

The words hit her. After he tried to kiss her twice yesterday, she had expected a little more warmer welcome. Was he still angry at her for declining his kiss? She had no idea what was happening to him, and what was happening to them.

When he turned around and stepped into the light coming from the candles, she noticed how his face was covered with blood. Rodrik Cassel's blood. He did it, he really had gone through with him.

"What are _you_ doing?" Kaelyn moved from the bed and took a cloth which was laying in a bowl with water into her hands. She raised her hand and carefully dapped his face clean.

"I did what was necessary."

"Was killing him necessary?" Kaelyn cupped his face with her free hand, forcing him to look in the eye. "What is happening to you, Theon? Why are you acting like this? What did your father say to you?"

Those were only the few questions of many Kaelyn had, and she doubted she would get an answer out of him.

"I'm fighting for my family now, not for the Starks." Theon replied.

"But why?"

Why would he all of a sudden return to his home and turn on Robb so quickly?

"Because I have to. I was never a Stark, but I am a Greyjoy. It's my duty to fight for my family, to avenge my brothers."

Kaelyn had forgotten all about his brothers. They were killed during the Greyjoy rebellion, the same rebellion which made Theon a hostage of the Starks.

"I understand you want to fight for you family, but are there not other ways for you to fight for them? Did you have to kill Ser Rodrik?"

"No, there aren't any other ways, Kaelyn. We pay the iron price. If I had not killed Ser Rodrik, my men would not respect me. They would think I'm weak."

"You are not weak" Kaelyn assured him. "You do not have to prove yourself to them. You have proven yourself to me in the past, that is enough. Those men do not care about you!"

"And you do care about me?"

"I care for Theon, not the Prince of Winterfell." She lowered her hand and turned to put the cloth away. She felt like she was losing a battle between them. Was there no way she could convince him to stop this madness.

"I'm still Theon." He took her hand and pulled her close.

"This person I'm seeing is not him. Please be careful with what you do. Think before anyone talks you into doing something bad. You might loose everything if you are not careful."

Kaelyn felt a tear rolling down her cheek.

"I told myself that when you came back, I would tell you I loved you. But this man who is standing before me was not the man I loved. I'm so sorry, Theon."

She fixed her eyes on the ground and walked out his chambers, avoiding his gaze. The tears were almost uncontrollable and when she closed the door behind her, she could not help but to let it all out.

* * *

Kaelyn could not bear to return home. She could not live through another night of her father talking about how he was right about Theon. It was because he was _wrong_. This was not Theon, he was just making bad decisions, nothing more. She wished he would see that he did not need to prove himself to the Iron Men. He was a Greyjoy, what more proof than that did the Iron Men need.

She waited until she knew her father was asleep to return home. She had hid herself in one of the empty chambers. If she stood in the hallway she could just see the door towards Theon's chamber. She did not dare to light the fire, fearing someone might see her even though she knew she had nothing to hide.

When she looked outside she noticed the gates of the castle were not guarded, yet no one had the courage to leave. _Maybe I could convince Theon to leave with me. And I could take my sister and my mother with me as well_.

Before opening the door she listened if she heard any footsteps, but there seemed to be no one present in the hallway. As soft as she could she opened the door and just when she was about to step out she saw the flickering light of a torch reflecting on the stone wall.

Her heart beating in her chest, she closed the door but she left it open just a little bit, curious to see who it was. The footsteps came closer and closer. Kaelyn noticed it was only one person and when the figure had passed her, she recognized her. It was Osha. What was she doing in the castle this late?

When Kaelyn put her head around the door to get a better view, she found it what she was doing in the castle. Osha was going to see Theon.

* * *

"But you are not a soldier!" Kaelyn defended. She had never expected her father to stand up to fight, he was a smith, not a soldier.

"I have to defend the North against the kraken. I'm joining up with the Boltons." He made some final adjustments to his armor before putting it on. Kaelyn noticed how he had forged a completely new swords for himself.

Her father had the plan to sneak away from the castle with some others and make their way for the Boltons. Together they could take Winterfell back from Theon's hands. It was something Kaelyn did not wanted to see. If it really were to come to a battle it meant someone she loved had to die. Either Theon died, or her father, there would be no in between.

"You don't have to. The Iron Men will leave soon! Robb will come back and everything will get better." She was fairly sure that was not going to happen, but she would like to believe Robb was coming back soon.

"I do, Kaelyn. Just because you like that kraken boy does not mean we all do." He turned to his wife and her younger sister. "I'll see you shortly when we take back Winterfell. Stay safe."

He gave them both a kiss, but gave Kaelyn just a nod. She guessed he was fairly certain about taking back Winterfell. He probably did not also want to take it for the North, but also for himself. If he could get rid of Theon, he could get his daughter back. _But I'm not going to let that happen._

* * *

**A/N: I'm not sure what I think of this chapter, so please let me know what you think and what you will think will happens next! See you next time :)**


	7. For a moment

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA  
**_For a moment_

Keeping her head down, Kaelyn passed the yard to the castle. She noticed there were guards standing in front of the entrance, checking everyone who wanted to enter. Avoiding eye contact, Kaelyn tried to push the door open, but one of the guards blocked her entrance with his arm.

"Where do you think you are going" he spoke, pushing her back.

"I need to check on Bran Stark."

"That's not possible. He's a hostage of us now, you need permission to see him" the other guard said.

Kaelyn crossed her arms. "I'm fairly certain I am allowed to see him. Ask Theon."

"Wait" the guard who was blocking the door said. "Isn't she that wench Theon told us not to touch?"

"Could be, don't really remember that clearly."

She raised her eyebrows when they called her wench, but paid no further mind to it. She had to see both Bran and Theon.

"Yes, I am that girl" she said convincing. "Now, can I please pass?"

"It will be alright I guess" the guard moved his arm away and opened the door for her, closing it once she had passed.

"If she is not that wench, I'll be blaming you" Kaelyn heard the guards say behind her back. She rolled her eyes, had they not paid attention when Theon pointed at her with his sword, threatening to kill any man who will hurt her?

Because there was hardly anyone in the castle, none of the torches were lit. Kaelyn grabbed her own and let it illuminate the hallway for her. The heat coming from the torch was pleasantly warm on this cold winter day.

Her father had left and it felt like she was free, free to do whatever she wanted. Still she had to marry that Brandon boy, her father had told her repeatedly. _We'll see about that_, Kaelyn had thought, but she did not dare to say it aloud.

It was past midday so she expected Theon to be in his room, seen as she had not see him present in the yard. Before knocking on his door, she hesitated for a moment, was she really going to confront him?

Theon opened the door himself and upon seeing Kaelyn, he quickly let her in. "Is there something you want?"

She raised her eyebrows upon hearing his hostility. To be honest she was not impressed with his tone, as she knew he meant nothing with it. _He's just trying to prove himself to his men. He's trying to prove he is strong_.

"Yes, there is" Kaelyn started. "How is that wildling woman doing?"

Theon tilted his head slightly to the right. "Osha? I don't know."

"Yes, you do." _You are not fooling me, Theon Greyjoy. _"I saw her entering your chamber last night."

"… How?" Theon stumbled.

_So, it was true_. Osha had spend the night in Theon's chamber doing Gods know what with each other. Even though Kaelyn was not liking Theon terribly much since his return, she was feeling jealous. She was feeling jealous because she knew the old Theon was still present, the man she loved.

"It was pure coincidentally" Kaelyn admitted. "I was hiding in the castle and when I was just about to leave, I saw her. Don't deny it."

"Yes, she was here last night. But she is gone now" Theon spoke and turned his back to her. "Does it even matter?"

"Yes, Theon! It does matter! I waited for you." Couldn't he see how much she wanted him back. How much she wished she could turn back the time. If Lord Stark was not beheaded, none of this would've happened.

"You do not want me anymore. You made that clear."

"I want Theon. I want you. Not this Prince of Winterfell."

Theon turned around and took both her hands. "The real Theon is still here."

Kaelyn sighed. His hands felt so nice against hers and she wanted to believe him so bad, but something was withholding her from believing him.

When she was just about to speak again, the door swung open and Iron Men appeared in the opening. "My lord, can we speak?"

Upon seeing his men, Theon quickly let her hands go. "I'll be there in a minute" he told them.

"It's urgent" the soldier insisted.

Theon nodded understandably as he took his sword from the table and drank a sip of wine from his cup. "We will talk when I come back" he said before disappearing, leaving Kaelyn alone again.

* * *

All was very quiet down the yard. Kaelyn found it strange, normally there would be several Iron Men walking up and down the yard, guarding the gates and practicing and sword fights. Today there was no one. Still she looked around her, trying to spot someone.

When she was about halfway she finally saw someone. She noticed it was one of Theon's men, so she bowed her head, eyes fixed on the ground, and kept on walking.

"My lady?" the man spoke from behind.

Kaelyn stopped and turned to reply. "Yes?"

Out of nowhere a second Iron Born appeared, and a third, and a fourth. Kaelyn could not believe she had not seen them before and she began to feel uneasy. Apart from them there was no one present, there weren't even any ravens flying over.

"You must come with us, my lady."

Theon had told them not to touch her, had he not? She hesitated for a moment, wondering what they wanted from her. _Maybe Theon called for me again?_ Kaelyn decided to give in to their command. There were four of them, if she resisted they would overpower her with ease and take her with them anyway.

"Where are we going?" she asked. One of the men softly pushed her so she walked in front of them.

"Just through there" He shone his torch in the direction of a corridor.

Kaelyn could not recall ever being in this part of the castle before. Winterfell was so big, there were still a million places she had not discovered and explored.

She followed the corridor all the way, not sure where exactly they were heading because it was so dark. When she started to see a light at the end of the corridor she started to feel very uncomfortable. If Theon wanted to see her he would've just called her to his chamber?

"Where are we?" Kaelyn said, wrapping her arms around her after the cold air hit her skin. _Wait, am I underground?_

"Just a little further, my lady" the man with the torch said.

When she finally reached the lit up area at the end of the corridor she was absolutely sure she had never been here before. She did not even had a chance to look around as one of them yanked her away on her arm.

"You are hurting me" Kaelyn said upon feeling the man's grip. Did they not know who she was? _Where is Theon?_ _Where is he when I need him most?_

"If you do not cooperate it will hurt a great deal more."

"What?!" Kaelyn exclaimed as the words sunk in. The men pushed her down into a chair and secured her arms and legs with rope, making sure she could not break loose. "What are you doing?" she asked again.

"Where are Bran and Rickon Stark?" they asked her once she was tightly secured to the chair.

"In their chambers? I don't know?" she had no idea what they were talking about. Bran could not walk by himself, he must be in his chamber, where else could he be?

She did not see the blow to her face coming. It stung badly and when she opened her eyes she felt the room spinning.

_What is happening to me? I need Theon. Where is he? He has to come._ Thoughts clouded her mind and everything seemed to fade around her.

"Don't try to be funny" the voice sounded so far away, but when she blinked a couple of times to clear her sight she saw the man's head floating in front of her. Immediately she closed her eyes again, hoping he would go away. "Where are the Starks boys?"

"I don't know! I really do not know, please don't hurt me!" she spoke as loudly as she could.

"I'm not going to ask you again. Where _are_ they?"

"Please, I don't know. What is happening? Are they gone? Please."

"The Stark boys have escaped this morning" the man took a step back, much to Kaelyn's relief. It was as she was able to breathe again now he had moved out of her space.

"How? Bran is a cripple?" She shouldn't have said that. The second blow did not seem as bad as the first one, maybe the pain had already numbed her.

"I'm warning you."

"Please, I'm sorry. I should not have said that. Please, don't hurt me anymore" Kaelyn apologized. "I really don't know where they are. I did not even know they were gone until a few seconds ago, please!"

"I think she is telling the truth" a voice behind her said.

"She is his nurse, she must know where they are."

"She sounds convincing to me."

Hope filled her up again. _Yes, believe me. I am telling the truth. I would never lie_.

"Didn't Theon not tell us not to hurt her?" Another voice said.

"We did not hurt her much…"

"Alright, let her go" the man in front of her said.

One of the men who were standing behind her moved in front of her and started untying her. "Sorry for the troubles, my lady." He handed her a torch and told her to follow the corridor back.

Kaelyn did not know she could run that fast.

* * *

She had hid herself in her chamber, not allowing her sister to enter. The bruising had already started but up and until now it was not that bad. It was hard to see with the candlelight but so far she observed it could have been a lot worse.

It had taken a while before she had gotten her breathing back to a regular pattern. She was still processing what exactly had happened and she had also come to a conclusion: it were these men who were changing Theon. Eddard Stark's men would never torture innocent women, not ever. If she could only convince him to let them go, to return to Robb, everything could go back the way it was.

"Kaelyn, dinner is ready!" her mother shouted from the kitchen.

"I'm not hungry!" Kaelyn shouted back. Her mother would definitely asks questions upon seeing her face, like any concerned mother would, but Kaelyn was not ready to talk about it yet.

She had to process the fact that she was interrogated and the fact that Bran and Rickon had left Winterfell. How did they do it? Did Maester Luwin know? Did Theon know what had happened to her?

It seemed as if everyday she would come up with ten news questions while only one of them was answered.

"I've made your favorite!" her mother tried one last time.

She had to admit her stomach was rumbling and she could not hide in her chamber forever…

"I'm not feeling to well, I'm going to bed!" she lied.

She would deal with her mother in the morning. _And with Theon. I want to know what he makes of this_.

* * *

Eventually her mother had come in her room. She told her she was concerned and if she should call Maester Luwin to check up on her. When her eyes fell on her face, she sent out Kaelyn's little sister to fetch him immediately.

"How did this happen?" her mother asked shocked. Kaelyn could feel her mothers eyes burning on her skin.

"The iron men, they questioned me" Kaelyn replied, suddenly aware of how tired she was feeling.

It was not long before Maester Luwin appeared in her room. It was strange to see him here, she had never needed his help before.

Kaelyn sat up on the side of her bed, trying to keep her head as still as possible to keep it from pounding. Maester Luwin crouched down in front of her, a comforting smile on his lips. "It does not look too bad, Kaelyn" he told her.

He softly touched her bruised skin and her forehead. "I fear you do have a minor concussion. It will be best to stay in bed for a few days."

"Mother, can I talk to Maester Luwin in private, please?" Kaelyn asked, suddenly remembering the fact that Bran and Rickon were gone. Had they also questioned Luwin?

"Yes, of course" her mother said before disappearing, taking her concerned younger sister with her.

"Is it true about Bran and Rickon?" she asked carefully.

Maester Luwin stood up and sat down next to her on the bed. "Yes…" he replied.

"Have they questioned you too?"

"No they did not. I was treating one of the men when they escaped. I could not have played any part in it."

"But how could they even escape?" Kaelyn wondered. Rickon was still so young and Bran could not walk by himself.

"They are not the only ones who are gone. Osha and Hodor are too."

_Osha?_ Suddenly everything fell into place. She guessed Osha distracted Theon so they could make an easy escape. She was a wildling so she knew her way around nature while Hodor could carry Bran.

"I hope they are somewhere safe" Kaelyn sighed. After today she too wanted nothing more but to leave Winterfell. It did not feel like her home anymore. Everything that had once been so familiar to her had changed.

"I hope so too, child. The Iron Men will search for them in the morrow. Let's hope they will not be found."

Maester Luwin squeezed her hand and moved from the bed. "If you want I can bring you some milk of the poppy?" he asked, ready to leave.

"No, I will be fine" Kaelyn replied with a soft smile. "Tomorrow will be better."

* * *

Her sister had slept in her parents bed, so she could have some peace and quiet. Kaelyn found it so cute that the fact her little sister was so concerned about her. Even after she had told her she did not feel that bad, she would have none of it. She even brought her breakfast and stayed with her, waiting patiently until she had ate it all.

After that she helped Kaelyn dress. For today Kaelyn had chosen a dark blue dress with a round neck. This way her dress would not get stuck on her head. It was a pretty dress to wear for no special occasion, but Kaelyn did not have any other dresses that would do.

Luckily she still had some books from Maester Luwin laying around, so she could do something while resting. The letters in the books were hurting her head a little, though.

"Kaelyn?" her sister popped her head around the door.

"Yes, sweety?" Kaelyn replied. Her sister was really trying her hardest to take good care of her. Kaelyn made a mental note to get a gift for her one day.

"There is someone here for you."

"I'll be there in a minute" Kaelyn replied. She pushed herself up a slowly as possible and put her bare feet on the ground.

"No need to." The door swung open en there he stood.

"Theon…" Kaelyn said a little shocked. She moved her eyes to the ground and hid the right side of her face from him. "What are you doing here?"

Theon closed the door. "Look at me" he ordered.

Kaelyn bit on her lip before turning her face towards him. She had not had a chance to see how her face looked for herself, so she could only hope the bruising went down since yesterday.

But by the look of his face, the bruises did not go down.

"I will hurt them for this."

"Don't" Kaelyn replied fiercely. Even though she felt like the men deserved punishment for treating her this way, she was fairly sure they would all turn on Theon. Kaelyn sensed they were not as loyal to him as Theon thinks they are. "You need them. Hurt them when you do not need their loyalty anymore."

Theon crouched down so he could face her better. "I'm so sorry, Kaelyn. I had not part in this. I asked them question everyone who was close to Bran, but I figured they would understand that did not include you…"

There was something about seeing Theon apologizing for his men which made everything seem better. It was almost, for a moment, the old Theon sat in front of her.

"It's fine. They did not hurt me that bad."

He raised her eyebrows when she spoke. "According to the bruises in your face, they did hurt you pretty bad."

"It could be worse" Kaelyn smiled faintly.

"I promise you I won't let it happen again" Theon said. He extended his arms and held Kaelyn close to him. "Not ever."

She could feel the butterflies in her stomach starting the flutter again. Yes, this was the Theon she wanted, the Theon she remembered.

Kaelyn dug her face into his neck and closed her eyes, ignoring the pain caused by leaning her head forward.

"You know, I still have your needlework" Theon let her go and grabbed the piece she once stitched for him out of his pocket.

"You kept it?" Kaelyn smiled in surprised. She did not think he would have kept it. It made her happy to think he still held onto it after so long, even though it looked really bad.

"Of course, I did." Theon replied. "It's not often someone made something for me."

"Do you think you will find Bran and Rickon?" Kaelyn asked.

"Yes" Theon said determined. "We will go after them in just a little while. I wanted to check on you first."

She pressed her body against his again, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Will your promise me that you won't hurt them?"

"I will have to do what's necessary. If they cooperate, I won't hurt them, I promise."

* * *

After Theon had left, Kaelyn tried to sleep for the rest of the day. Sitting up straight had not been the smartest thing to do, but it had been worth it. It finally felt like Theon was coming back to her.

When she woke up again, she had gathered every strength she had to walk to the kitchen. _I cannot stay in my chamber all day_. Her mother had already made supper and it smelled so amazing that Kaelyn forgot her pain for a moment. After a whole day of rain, the sky was finally clear again. She could not wait for the winter to be over, even though it had not even fully started yet.

"How are you feeling?" her mother sat down opposite from her.

"Better" Kaelyn said with her mouth half full. The headache seemed to go down, now the only thing left to worry about were her bruises.

"Maybe it is best if we postpone the meeting of your betrothal…"

Kaelyn did not see that one coming. She nodded eagerly. To be honest she had already forgotten she was supposed to meet him this week, so much had happened that it had completely slipped her mind.

"After what happened I think it's for the best." Her mother smiled.

"Thank you, mother" Kaelyn said gratefully. The atmosphere in her home had changed so much since her father left. It seemed as if everyone finally had room to breathe and even though she loved her father dearly, the change was for the better.

After supper they had carrot cake, because her mother wanted Kaelyn to feel better. The cake tasted delicious as well, but she could feel herself growing tired again. "Would it be alright if I go to bed again?" Kaelyn asked.

"Of course, sweetling" her mother replied with a soft smile.

When Kaelyn was just to disappear to her chamber she heard a loud knock on the door. Her heart skipped a beat, images of her interrogation flashing before her eyes. Forgetting all about her tiredness, she shot around, eyes fixed on the door.

Without a warning the door burst open and one of Theon's men told them to come down to the yard.

Kaelyn was hesitant at first, remembering what had happened when Iron Men told her to follow them, but when she looked past the soldier she saw more people had gathered on the yard. She looked at her mother and nodded it was fine. Taking the lead, Kaelyn walked out of their house first, wondering why they were being gathered again. Had they found Bran and Rickon? Theon promised he would not hurt them…

"I told you what would happen if you serve my loyally" she heard Theon speak. "And what would happen if you did not." Theon was standing on an elevated platform, addressing his smallfolk.

Kaelyn could feel her heart rate going up. She had a bad feeling about this one, a really bad feeling. For some strange reason the Iron Men could always talk Theon into something he should not do, like the execution of Ser Rodrik.

Maester Luwin came dragged in from her left. He was protesting against the Iron Men but he gave them no match. Kaelyn took her litter sisters hand and pulled her closer.

"And some of you question if your new lord means what he says" Theon continued. "Here is the answer to your question…"

He extended his arm and pointed to the ropes which were pulling something up. Kaelyn did not even know what she was looking at until she heard Maester Luwin cry out. She shielded her sister's eyes as quickly as she could, but she was feeling faint hearted herself.

On the end of the rope two little boys were hanging. Burnt. Burnt to a crisp.

_No._ Kaelyn thought. _Theon promised me he would not harm them. He promised._

She could feel the world slipping away. Everything turned black, except the bodies of the boys which kept lingering in her sight.

In the end she did not know if she fainted from exhaustion, the lifeless bodies, the pain or the fact that Theon had let her down once again.

* * *

She woke up in Maester Luwin's chamber. How she got here, she had no idea. The last thing she could remember were the burned up bodies.

"You were out quite a while" Luwin spoke. Putting a cup to her lips so she could take a sip. While swallowing she noticed how raw her throat felt.

"Tell me it isn't true" Kaelyn said softly, putting her hands on her head, trying to ease the pain inside her head.

Maester Luwin did not reply so Kaelyn knew enough.

"Theon told me to tell him when you woke up, so I better go find him" Luwin said. "You stay put."

She could not believe how Maester Luwin acted like nothing had happened. _How did he process this so quickly?_

Kaelyn did not reply and turned on her side, her back facing towards the room. She could feel the tears starting to well up in her eyes. Earlier that day she had her Theon back for a moment. She was convinced this was the start of getting him back fully, but he made another mistake. It was like they took one step forward and ten steps backwards.

The Iron Islanders had some kind of influence on him she could not explain. She also could not convince him to listen to her. After tonight she finally saw what Rodrik Cassel meant. Theon was truly lost. _And so am I_.

Theon had come to her so quickly she did not even had to time to think of what she wanted to tell him.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her, sitting on the side of her bed.

"Have you lost your mind?" Kaelyn replied, her back still towards Theon.

She heard him sigh and Luwin went out of the room, leaving them alone together.

The butterflies she had felt this morning were dead. As dead as Bran and Rickon Stark.

"Kaelyn, please, look at me" Theon tried to turn her around by putting his hand on her shoulder.

Kaelyn shot up and pushed his hand away. "Don't touch me" she warned.

She saw he was taken aback by her warning. _Good_, she thought. _Let him think about what he has done._

"It's not what you think" he said, referring to the burnt bodies. "Those were not the Stark boys. We never found them."

"You promised" Kaelyn said.

"I promised not to hurt Bran and Rickon and I didn't!" he defended.

Kaelyn rolled her eyes, getting annoyed with the fact he tried to talk his way out of this. "So you killed two innocent children instead. I don't know what has happened to you, Theon."

"I had to! My men will not respect me if I had not killed them!"

"You disgust me" Kaelyn said without thinking. "I want nothing to do with you anymore. Go back to the Iron Islands, go home to your father, I don't care."

Theon's eyes widened while Kaelyn felt tears coming out of hers. She had given up the fight, there was no way she could ever win, not with his men influencing him so much.

"You don't mean this" Theon managed to stumble.

"I do. Do with Winterfell and its people what you like, but never ever look at me again."

* * *

**A/N: *DRAMATIC MUSIC* Not really the ending everyone hoped for now is it? Well, lets see how Theon will react to this next chapter :) As always thank you for reading and please review!**


	8. Fight or flight

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA  
**_Fight or flight_

Kaelyn had stayed inside her home for the rest of the week. Busy recovering from her concussion, and busy recovering from her heartbreak. After seeing those bodies she knew that was the end of them. She realized she might have lost Theon forever.

She helped her mother with the housework as best as she could and occasionally went to see Maester Luwin, but less often than she had done before. The moments she was with him, he sensed there was something wrong, always asking how she was feeling.

"How are you and Theon doing?" Maester Luwin asked her one time out of nowhere while Kaelyn was pretending to study maps of The Reach.

Hearing his name broke her heart all over again. She had not heard it for a long time, as her mother never brought him up. Kaelyn took a deep breath to regulate her breathing before saying: "I don't really want to talk about it."

"It seems to bother you. Maybe it is best to talk about it?" Maester Luwin suggested. He closed the book in front of her and sat down next to her.

Kaelyn bowed her head. There was nothing to say. He was lost and she was lost without him. If he did not try to prove himself to the Iron Islanders, everything would still be as it was. _Why did Robb let him go home?_ She did not know what had happened on Pyke, but he had came back a changed man.

"Did you forgive him? You know, for…" Kaelyn asked Luwin. She did not know if he knew those bodies were not Bran and Rickon, but she did not dare to tell him.

"No" Luwin said. "But I'm sworn to serve the lord of Winterfell, and right now Theon is the lord of Winterfell."

"Oh" Kaelyn replied, her eyes fixed on the cover of the book.

"Is there anything else you want to ask, Kaelyn?" Maester Luwin said.

"What am I supposed to do?" she said. "Do I stay loyal to him or turn away? These Ironmen are not as loyal to him as he thinks. I'm the only one he has…" Truth was, Kaelyn was completely lost with what to do. Her head told her to stay away from him, her heart told her to return and to stand by his side.

"Stay with him if you find the strength in your heart to forgive him. Turn away if you cannot" Maester Luwin advised.

She listened carefully to his words, letting them sink in. Truth was, she had no idea what she was supposed to do. Everyone she asked told them their opinion and no one's comment seemed to help her in her decision.

Kaelyn thought distancing herself from Theon would set her free, would make everything easier, but it did quite the opposite. Instead of free she felt confined by feelings she had not felt so strongly before and those feelings made everything a lot more difficult.

"I made you a paste that will help get rid of the final bruising" Luwin said, taking something from his cabinet. She was grateful that he did not continued to ask her about him.

The bruising was almost gone, except for a yellowish tone that still was still present around her eyes and on her cheek.

Kaelyn sat still as Luwin softly patted the paste on her skin. The paste itself looked just as yellow as her skin, but it did not smell too bad. It felt as if her skin was being cleansed of any ugly bruising that was still left on it. She hoped that one day she was also able to make pastes from herbs and other minerals. It was too bad that women could not become a maester, but a nurse would serve her just fine for the time being.

She closed her eyes as she waited for her skin to absorb the paste, letting the world slip away for a moment. Her moment was short lived. Outside horses could be heard arriving in the yard. Kaelyn opened her eyes while sighing. Could she get a bit of peace and quiet for just a moment?

"Ah! That must be Asha Greyjoy" Maester Luwin said, putting the scrolls he was replacing down on the oak table.

_Asha Greyjoy? As in Theon's sister?_ Suddenly she recalled that Maester Luwin indeed had sent ravens to her, asking her to come to Winterfell with extra men. Theon had feared he could not hold Winterfell with just his crew.

Kaelyn also stood up and walked to the window, wiping off some of the dust with her sleeve so she could see better. In front of the host of soldiers, a woman rode. She guessed that was Asha Greyjoy. Asha was wearing leather pants and black mail, covered with a kraken of the house Greyjoy. If you looked closely you could see some of the same facial features as Theon had.

"The cooks are preparing a large dinner for all of the men Asha brought with her. Maybe you could see if they need help" Maester Luwin suggested.

Kaelyn nodded. It might not even be a bad idea. She could keep busy and keep her mind of things while she could study Theon's sister. Having not met her before, she was eager to find out what exactly she was like.

"I will" Kaelyn replied, but Maester Luwin had already left. Through the window she saw him step into the yard, ready to welcome Asha Greyjoy to Winterfell.

* * *

The man in charge of the dinner told Kaelyn she could serve the guests wine and ale, depending on what they preferred. She doubted if it was fair to call them guests, but she did not feel like arguing about it.

She went round the table, trying her best to remember what everyone ordered while ignoring the comments of the men who were obviously eager to bed a woman after their long ride. After fitting as many cups on a plate as she could, she returned to the Great Hall. Instead of trying to remember what everyone had ordered, Kaelyn put the plate in the middle of the table and waited patiently for all the men to take a cup. There were so many new faces and she could not remember any of them.

When the plate was empty Kaelyn took it off the table and asked Asha if she wanted anything else. Seeing as her cup was empty she replied: "Aye, ale will do fine."

As for now Kaelyn was not able to get a good impression of her. Surely, she was loved by her men and she could keep them in control with ease, but she had not heard her talk about Theon or Bran and Rickon whatsoever. Kaelyn was very curious to hear what Asha had to say about the actions of her brother.

Kaelyn also wondered if Asha saw Theon as a brother. He had been absent from Pyke for most of his life, did she still care for him as Kaelyn cared for her little sister?

While still trying to figure out who Asha Greyjoy was exactly, Kaelyn bumped into someone, slamming her plate into his chest. "Excuse me" Kaelyn muttered before looking up. When her eyes met his she quickly turned around and headed in the opposite direction. She could have expected Theon to be here, he wanted to dine with his sister. _Why didn't I think of that?_

It was the first time in days she had seen him and from what she had seen in the split second when she had looked into his eyes, he was looking terrible. Dark circles had formed under his eyes and his overall expression was not as lively as it had been before. _He always used to smile._ This war was taking its toll on him.

When Kaelyn felt herself starting to feel sorry for him, she quickly tried to push the feelings away. That did not stop her from glancing over her shoulder to see him talking with Asha. Their conversation was not as warm as Kaelyn had expected. Asha and Theon looked at each other ill-conditioned and when Asha told him something Theon's expression turned into despair.

_Turn away now_, Kaelyn ordered herself. _Turn away before you turn back to him and he does not deserve it. He has to pay for his actions_. For once she listened to herself and took a detour to the kitchens, as she could not go to the door where she had came from, fearing she would have to talk to Theon.

On her way she had completely forgotten what Asha had ordered. _Was it wine? Ale? Water?_ After seeing Theon her mind went blank and it took her a while before she was thinking regularly again. Kaelyn decided to not go back to the Great Hall at all, the fear of falling for him was too big and she did not want to risk it. She knew that when she saw him, she might find it in her heart to forgive him, and right now that was not the plan she was going for.

Kaelyn wanted Theon to fight for it. She wanted him to fight for her and yes, she had to admit she was making it a little bit hard for him, but he did not expect that he could kill two innocent children and get away with it?

Starting to feel tired, Kaelyn decided to go home. There was nothing more right now she wanted to do but sleep and dream of a better world than she was living in right now.

* * *

Asha Greyjoy only stayed in Winterfell for a few days, which troubled Kaelyn. Why would she already leave and take all her men with her? Was she confident Theon could keep Winterfell on his own?

The following morning after her departure Kaelyn went to ask Maester Luwin about it. "Why has she left?" she asked once she found Luwin in the castle.

"Theon did not tell me, so I don't know, child" he replied.

She found it odd, normally Theon would tell Luwin everything but even he was left in the dark.

With so many people gone from Winterfell, both her and Maester Luwin did not have any responsibilities to attend to. Normally she would check up on Bran right around this time and see if the direwolves had something to eat. Now they were gone, even the wolves. There were hardly any injuries needed to be treated because hardly anyone dared to go outside anymore. They all feared the Ironmen after seeing the burnt bodies.

Kaelyn was about to head back home when she heard the sound of a warhorn blowing loudly over Winterfell. She turned back around to look at Maester Luwin and raised her eyebrows. Warhorns were always bad news.

"We better go to see Theon" Maester Luwin said upon hearing the horn blowing.

"No, I can't" Kaelyn replied determined. "I'll just go home. It's probably someone who wants to enter the castle."

"Kaelyn, you are coming with me. I don't know what happened between you two, but you cannot avoid him for the rest of your life. Besides, that's a warhorn calling, best to stay indoors now."

This was not up for discussion and if she was honest, the horn was scaring her a little.

"Okay" she said, rolling her eyes and sighing. She doubted this would be a pleasant reunion.

* * *

Maester Luwin softly knocked on the door of Theon's chamber. When walking through the hallways Kaelyn noticed the castle was empty, not even Ironmen were wandering around. No reply came, but still Luwin pushed the door open and entered, Kaelyn following closely.

Theon was sitting in one of the chairs in front of the fireplace, which was brightly lit and filling the room with warmth. Both his bow and longsword lay on top of the table, ready to be used. The sound of the warhorn was still echoing through Winterfell, sending shivers up Kaelyn's spine.

"I want you to know you are surrounded" Luwin stated.

Kaelyn closed the door behind her and kept standing behind Luwin, not daring to say something. Theon was still seated with his back towards them, probably unaware she was also in the room.

"I know that" he replied.

She was not sure if he was simply not impressed with the Northmen camping outside the walls, or if she heard the sound of panic in his voice.

"No word from my father?" he continued.

_If only Asha Greyjoy were still here with her men._

"No" Maester Luwin replied, moving closer to Theon. Kaelyn stayed behind in the far back of the room, she did not dare to come any closer.

"Send more ravens" Theon ordered. She did not know what he wanted to accomplish with sending more ravens. The birds would never reach the Iron Islands in time.

"You killed all the ravens…" Luwin said down on the other chair by the fire.

Kaelyn was starting to feel uncomfortable. When was it her turn to speak? How would Theon react when he saw her? Surely he would be angry with her, which was to be expected.

"First time I saw Winterfell, it looked like something that had been here for a thousands of years, and would be here for thousands of years after I was dead. I saw it, and I thought, of course Ned Stark crushed our rebellion and killed my brothers. We never stood a chance against the man who lives here" Theon began, his eyes still fixed on the fire roaring in the fireplace.

"Lord Stark went out of his way to make it your home" Luwin replied.

"Yes, my captors were so very kind to me, you love to remind me of that. Everyone in this frozen pile of shit always loved to remind me of that. You know what it's like to be told how lucky you are to be someone's prisoner? To be told how much you owe them? And then to go back home to your real father…" Theon stopped talking upon hearing the warhorn blowing again.

After hearing Theon talk, Kaelyn felt speechless. It was as if everything came together, they way Theon acted, why he was suddenly fighting for the Greyjoys. She did not know why it had taken her so long to figure out, that the only thing he wanted was _to belong_.

Kaelyn could hit herself for not seeing this sooner. She was the only one he had and she pushed him away when she should be helping him. It was her who made everything worse. _I should have kept fighting and not giving up so easily…_

When Theon stood up to react to the warhorn, his eyes fell on her. She felt her heart sink when she looked him in his eyes, realizing his feelings were hurt.

She wanted to talk, but nothing came out of her. Instead, she just stood there, watching him with her mouth hanging open.

"Theon, listen to me" Maester Luwin said, breaking the awkward silence. "I serve Winterfell and now Winterfell is yours. I am bound by oath to serve you."

Theon's eyes rested on Kaelyn for a moment before he turned to Luwin. "And what is your council, trusted friend?"

"Run. Five hundred Northmen wait outside the walls. You have twenty men" Maester Luwin adviced. "You can't win. Wait for nightfall and run."

"There is no where to run. I'll never make it back to the Iron Islands, and even if I did and made it home, I'd be a coward. I'd be the Greyjoy who ran, the shame of the family."

"Don't go home. Join the Night's Watch. Once a man has taken the black, he is beyond reach of the law."

Theon sat back down in the chair again. Kaelyn started to feel her hands tremble as she realized there was no easy way out of this. Either way, it meant Theon had to leave Winterfell. The problem was, she did not want to leave him behind, but she also did not want to leave her family behind.

"I won't make it to the Wall" Theon said. "I won't make it ten feet past the Winterfell gates."

"There are ways, hidden passage ways" Luwin said.

Kaelyn had heard about the passageways before, but she had never found one. There were supposed to be hundred hidden away in the castle, accessible in various rooms and cupboards. She wondered if the hallway she went through before when she was questioned was a hidden passageway too.

For a moment she saw hope in his eyes as he shifted his eyes from the fire to Luwin.

"The Night's Watch is an ancient and honorable order. You'll have opportunities there" Luwin said, trying to convince Theon.

"The opportunity for Jon Snow to cut my throat in my sleep?" Theon stood up again.

"Opportunities to make amends for yourself, for what you have done."

Kaelyn moved her eyes to the ground as she Theon passed her.

"I've done a lot, haven't I? Things I have not imagined myself doing."

"I've known you many years, Theon Greyjoy. You are not the man you are pretending to be. Not yet."

"You may be right" Theon admitted. "But I've gone too far to pretend anything else…"

This time Kaelyn spoke up. "No!" she said, taking a step forward. "Please, go to the Wall, you'll be safe there."

She could see Theon was surprised she spoke up, or he was surprised by the fact she agreed with Luwin. When she looked at Maester Luwin, he nodded gratefully. To be honest she was also quite surprised Maester Luwin was helping Theon, especially after he killed Bran and Rickon. _Or not, he killed some other children who looked like them_.

Theon raised his eyebrows while waiting for her to continue.

"I shouldn't have said the things I said" she apologized. "I know I have hurt you and you might hate me at the moment, but please, listen to Maester Luwin. If you join the black no one will be able to hurt you."

"I don't hate you…" Theon said softly. "But I can't take the black. I will have no honor, no lands, no wife, I will be among rapists and outlaws."

It was as if a weight was lifted of her shoulders when he told her he did not hate her and for a moment Kaelyn could've sworn when he said the word 'wife' he looked at her, but maybe that was just her imagination taking over, showing her things she wanted to see. However, what she wanted to hear was something different than she just heard.

"You do not need to prove yourself to anyone" Kaelyn tried.

"I have to show my father I can keep Winterfell. I have to show him I am his one and only heir, not Asha."

"You don't. You have proven yourself to me, and that's enough" she took another step forward so she was standing face to face with him.

"No" Theon insisted. "If I'm going down, I will go down with a fight."

The blower of the warhorn started blowing again, much to Theon's annoyance.

"I'd rather have you take the black than have you die at the hands of the Northmen. I'd rather loose you to the Night's Watch than loose you forever."

If Theon were to join the Night's Watch she could at least see him, and that was more than she could ever wish for.

"You lost me to moment I went back to my father" Theon said. He shifted his gaze to Luwin. "I have to do this."

_No…_ _What are you doing? Why do you never listen?_ Kaelyn knew this could be the end for him, there was no way they could defend the castle with only twenty men.

Theon started walking to the door and disappeared in the hallway. Wanting to try to convince him one final time to stay and take the black, Kaelyn went after him, struggling to keep up with his quick pace.

"Theon wait, please" she hissed as she followed him.

He stopped and turned around. "I'm not going back" he spoke.

Kaelyn ignored what he said and pressed her body against his, placing a soft kiss on his lips. "You better win this battle, I don't want to lose you."

He looked flustered when Kaelyn broke off the kiss. She just had to do it one last time, this might be the last time she would ever get the chance.

"If I die, I'll die honorable" he replied. "Whatever happens stay inside the castle. If it should come to it, use the secret passageways to get out of here, take your family with me. Leave me behind, I'm to die here, fighting."

Before she could speak a final word, Theon had already started walking and when he disappeared round the corner, she could feel the tears coming down her cheeks. _This was it, _she thought, _next time I'll see him he is dead._

Trying to conceal her tears, she returned to Theon's chamber where Luwin was waiting for her. "I tried" she apologized. "But I could not convince him, I'm sorry."

"If this is what he wants, we should let him, even if our opinions differ from his."

Kaelyn nodded and stepped to the windows to look into the courtyard. She wanted to see it if he died, she wanted to take his body and bury it in the Wolfswood where they had trained so often. She could only pray it would not come to that.

Maester Luwin stood beside her, placing his hand on her shoulder. Now they could only wait for the Northmen to start pouring through the gates to take Winterfell within matter of seconds. The Ironmen lost this battle before it even had begun.

They both watched Theon give his speech to his men and Kaelyn had to keep reminding that this was not Theon, this was the Prince of Winterfell speaking. It was so hard to keep them apart because he sounded so convincing.

"Stay here" Luwin suddenly said, disappearing out of the room.

Kaelyn raised her eyebrows, not fully aware of what was going on. She kept standing in front of the window, watching everything.

When she heard Theon yell "What is dead may never die!" she felt shivers running down her spine.

He had hardly spoken the words when he was knocked out with a shovel from behind, the Ironmen laughing as Theon fell to the to the ground, unconsciously. Kaelyn's hand moved in front of her mouth as she started to whisper "no… no, no, no."

Those were Ironmen, not Northmen, why did they do this? She always figured his men were not that loyal to him, but she never thought they would turn on him.

Before she knew it she was running outside. When she opened the door to the courtyard she saw the Ironmen dragging Theon away, a black hood covering his head. As the Ironmen disappeared, the courtyard was completely empty except for Maester Luwin lying on the ground in a puddle of blood.

"What happened?" she asked him, struggling to breathe. Kaelyn kneeled beside him and placed one hand on the wound to stop the bleeding.

"You were right about the Ironmen. Theon shouldn't never had trust him." Luwin tried to stand and with a little help from Kaelyn he could walk. "Take me to the Godswood, please."

Kaelyn did so, supporting Luwin all the way. The warhorn had stopped and she wondered were the Northmen went. This was the perfect opportunity to take Winterfell, what were they waiting for?

Softly, Kaelyn put Luwin down next to the heart tree. If you were unaware of the soldiers waiting outside the walls, you would never know inside the Godswood. Everything seemed so peaceful in here.

"Listen to me carefully" Luwin said. "I want you to know that Bran and Rickon are hiding in the castle. If you happen to see them, help them escape. You should escape as well, take your family and go through the passageway hidden in Sansa's old chamber. It's located behind the fireplace, leave the castle and go to the Wall, they will protect you. Do not return to Winterfell until Robb Stark has returned to take it back. Will you promise me that?"

"Yes" Kaelyn said. She had no idea Bran and Rickon were hiding in the castle. She had to admit it was quite smart, seeing as no one was looking for them here.

"Now go! You don't have a lot of time."

"I can't leave you behind…" Kaelyn said. Her hand was drenched with his blood but at least she had stopped the bleeding.

"I will be fine. I'm off to a better place. Go and save yourself while you can" Luwin smiled faintly.

Kaelyn nodded. "Thank you for everything" she said gratefully before turning around to run home, already planning her escape in her mind.

* * *

**A/N: I borrowed a little from the series, I hope you don't mind but that scene was pretty much perfect. Thank you for reading and please review 3**


	9. Disguised

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA  
**_Disguised_

After she was sure she had left Maester Luwin behind safely, she ran to her house as fast as she could. There was not even time to mourn Luwin, they had to get out of Winterfell, and fast. Kaelyn could hear horses coming through the gate at the other side of the castle, which meant she had to hurry.

Without thinking she slammed the door open. Her mother and sister looked at her with raised eyebrows, completely oblivious to what was going on.

"We have to leave Winterfell" Kaelyn said panting. When her mother and sister continued to look at her she added: "There is no time to explain, you have to trust me!"

"Can we pack something?" her mother asked, seeing her daughter was being serious.

Kaelyn hesitated before she said no. They simply did not have the time to take anything with them. It would not be long before the Ironmen and Northmen would raid their houses and even though they were northerners themselves, Kaelyn did not know on which side she belonged. Especially since it seemed that the Ironmen and Northmen were working together.

They all grabbed their fur cloaks to protect them from the cold winds and went outside. The Northmen were getting closer to the courtyard so Kaelyn took her mother and sisters hand and started running towards the castle. Luckily she remembered where Sansa's chamber was and it was not long before they reached it.

Even though they had been running as hard as they could, they just made it in time. Flickering light from the torches of the Northmen shone through Sansa's chamber window and she could hear the laughing of the soldiers getting louder. It was obvious they were proud of their victory.

Her mother and sister waited patiently while Kaelyn tried to locate the passageway. _Behind the fireplace_, Luwin had told her. With her finger she traced the whole outside of the hearth but she could not get it off the wall. Taking a step back, Kaelyn examined the fireplace. If it was not accessible from the outside, it had to be accessible from the inside.

She stepped forward again and slid her hand under the ridge of the stone in the fireplace. Soon enough her fingers found a lever and she pulled it quickly. The backside of the fireplace opened up, revealing a dark tunnel going outside of the castle.

"We need to go through here" Kaelyn pointed towards the tunnel.

"How did you know it was there?" her mother asked, setting her foot inside the tunnel while holding the hand of her little sister.

"Maester Luwin told me. Quickly, we must go now."

"I can't believe we are leaving Winterfell. It seems such a long time ago when Lord Eddard was still here and Theon was nothing more than a ward…" her mother mumbled.

_Theon._ She had almost forgotten all about him. The images of him being dragged away, his head covered with a black hood returned to her. _I cannot leave him behind… Gods know what they'll do to him…_

She hesitated before stepping out of the tunnel again. "Mother, I have to get him. I can't leave him."

"No, Kaelyn, leave that boy behind and bring yourself to safety" her mother objected.

"I have to get him. I will never forgive myself if I left without him, he would have done the same for me" Kaelyn replied determined.

"Would he?" She could hear the doubt in her mothers voice.

"Yes" Kaelyn stated. "I have to do this. Follow this tunnel and find your way to the Wall, they'll protect you there. Find horses in a nearby village. I love you, go!"

Before her mother could object again, Kaelyn closed the hearth, separating herself from them. She knew they could reach the Wall earlier if she went with them, but there was no way she was going to leave him behind.

Her heart was pounding uncontrollably as she tried to search for any weapons, but of course Sansa's empty chamber had none. Pulling the hood of her fur cloak over her head, Kaelyn stepped outside. The hallway seemed empty, but Kaelyn knew it would be soon by filled with Northmen and there was no one she could trust.

She held her torch in front of her as she tried desperately to look for something that could be used as a weapon. Kaelyn remembered that some rooms had swords and axes hanging on the wall as a decoration, she figured she could use those. Without thinking, the turned to Theon's room and indeed found an axe hanging on the wall. Carefully she took it off the wall and found it was dull around the edges and covered in rust. However, there was no time to look for anything better. She scanned the room real quickly to see if Theon had any spare bows laying around, but her luck was against her.

With the heavy axe in one hand and the torch in the other, Kaelyn left Theon's room behind. The next step was finding Theon, and the first place she could think of was the place she was being held and questioned herself. Kaelyn remembered the place far to well and was able to find it without any difficulties.

But the room was empty but for the chair she had been questioned in. She rested her fingers on the back of the chair, thinking of any other places where they possibly could have taken Theon to. There was no doubt that there were more hidden rooms and passageways and there was no way she was going to find him by herself.

She decided to check the castle once again. Maybe they were holding him in Lord Eddard's old chamber, as it was one of the biggest chambers in the castle.

Kaelyn knew the chamber was just around the corner. _I should looked for another weapon, this axe is too heavy_. She dragged the axe more or less behind her, her arm already tired from carrying it.

"Stop, right there" a voice called when Kaelyn stood in front of Lord Eddard's chamber door.

_Shit, _she thought. Slowly, she turned around but she did not take off her hood. Kaelyn was surprised to see that the man who had called her was a Bolton bannerman.

"What are you doing? You can't be here. Come with me" the man extended his arm and nodded she were to give her axe to him.

After looking at the flayed man on his chest plate, an idea came to mind. _This could either go right, or terribly wrong._ Well, she had already come to far to go back. She had to save Theon, she owed him that.

With every bit of strength she had she lifted the axe up and hit the soldier against his knee. The axe did not even cut through his flesh, but it made him fall down in pain all the same.

The man started to grab for her ankles, but Kaelyn quickly responded and flung her axe at his head. Since he was so low to the ground, she did not had to pick up her axe as high. The axe had done its damage, after the impact the man did not move and she guessed she had only knocked him out for a moment.

Letting the axe fall to the ground, Kaelyn began to undress the man. He was taller than she was, but she figured his armor and clothing would still fit her. As she dropped her cloak and dress she felt how cold the air was. _Winter will be soon upon us,_ she thought. And this winter had brought them more difficult times than ever before.

As quick as she could Kaelyn pulled on the clothing and armor. She hid her hair under the helmet that seemed helpless against the brute force of the axe. Apart from his clothes, she also took his weapons and let her old axe behind. Her newly obtained longsword was lighter than the axe, but still she had as little experience with it. _If only I could get my hands on a bow…_

She hoped the rest of the Northmen did not pay any attention to her. There was no way to hide her feminine face and if you looked closely a hint of Kaelyn's breasts could be seen under her armor.

_This was a bad idea,_ Kaelyn thought as she stepped onto the yard to meet up with the rest of the men. She decided to stay in the back and to not meet eyes with anyone. All she needed to hear was someone say Theon's whereabouts.

"Can't believe that idiot thought he could keep Winterfell with only twenty men" the man in front of her said.

"Yeah, all those years spend living under Stark's roof did not make him any smarter" another spoke.

_Shut up_, she wanted to say._ He trusted his men. He took it with only twenty men, he counted on Asha but she failed him_.

They waited in the yard for something or someone. She kept her head low so the shadow casted by her helmet covered her face. The wait in the yard reminded her of when King Robert came to Winterfell. She could almost see Theon across the yard, smiling and winking at her. How she'd wish she could get that back.

After what felt like hours, the someone they had been waited for finally arrived. The man stood up upon the very same elevated platform where Theon stood when he announced the burning of the Stark boys. The man wore dark grey clothing and he also wore armor with the flayed man of House Bolton. Kaelyn guessed he was just a few years older than she was, _as old as Theon._ Kaelyn misliked him already. There was something about him that sent shivers upon her spine.

"The Ironmen have been put to the torch. They figured they could trust a Bolton, but they figured _wrong_" he spoke.

Kaelyn couldn't believe what she was hearing, but she had to keep a straight face in order to keep her cover. This man killed the Ironmen? What exactly was happening? For who were these men fighting?

"Tonight we will celebrate the great sack of Winterfell. Take any woman you like, kill any man you like. Serve me loyally and you will be repaid."

The men all laughed and roared and Kaelyn was glad she had sent her mother and sister on the way. They would probably be well outside of Winterfell by now.

"And someone get me a raven" the man added. "Because tonight we will send a piece of the Prince to Robb Stark, letting him know of our great victory!"

_A piece of the Prince?_ Kaelyn could only imagine what that could mean. She had to get to Theon before this man could get to him.

"He's a bloody lunatic that bastard…" the soldier in front of her spoke once the man left the yard under a round of applause. "… but I like his style."

She caught herself almost wanting to ask who he was exactly, but that would blow her cover in an instant. If she was dressed like a normal woman she would have been raped and killed, and the same fate was waiting for all the men, women and children who did not flee the castle.

"Yeah" the other confirmed. "I would like to see him with the Greyjoy. I heard all sorts of crazy stuff about him. He apparently names his dogs after the women he rapes and kills."

_He did what?_

"Heard that too. I'm glad we're on his side." The man laughed and the courtyard seemed to be emptying.

Kaelyn had no idea what to do or who to follow, so she decided to follow the men she heard talking the whole time. The only thing she did know was that Theon was indeed somewhere in the castle and if she did not find him quickly, Gods knows what that man was going to do to him.

She followed the men into the castle. Kaelyn tried to make sure she did not make a lot ofsound so they would not pay her any attention.

"You two" an other soldier appeared from around the corner. Kaelyn quickly hid herself behind a stone pillar, as the soldier had not even seen her at first. "Ramsay needs help with the Greyjoy, he's in cellar beneath the Maester's Tower."

Who was Ramsay? The name did ring a bell but she could not place it. She smiled when she heard where they were keeping Theon. Kaelyn had been in that cellar a hundred times, looking for herbs or old scrolls. But only time she could get to him was at night, her cover would definitely be blown if she went to him right now.

"Oh" the soldier seemed to remember. "Be careful, we just found Mikael laying unconscious in the hallway, without his clothes."

_Shit, _Kaelyn thought. Maybe she should've hid the body, why didn't she think of that at the time?

"He probably bedded some wench and passed out on the way outside" the soldiers laughed. "Perhaps I should try that as well, plenty of women to go around."

Their talk of women disgusted Kaelyn, but there was nothing she could do about it. Her one and only priority was getting Theon out of the castle, and as quickly as possible.

The wait until nightfall seemed to take forever. She had returned to Sansa Stark's chamber and hid herself in the secret passageway until she felt like it would be safe to go to Theon.

She expected he was guarded, but perhaps she could get past them as she was wearing Bolton armor and because of the dark they hopefully could not see her face.

_Wait_, she suddenly realized looking down at the chest plate she was wearing. _House Bolton, isn't Ramsay the baseborn son of Roose Bolton?_ Why was he keeping Theon? Kaelyn imagined that as seen the Bolton's were Stark bannermen, Theon would be returned to Robb.

Softly she opened the hearth and crawled out of it. The castle seemed to be asleep, as they had a celebration feast in the Great Hall, Kaelyn expected many of the soldiers to be drunk. She still found it all very strange, Ramsay Snow coming here and giving everyone permission to rape and kill anyone you wanted. The folks living in Winterfell were Northerners, just like he was.

There was no time to worry about it all. Kaelyn descended the stairs to make her way over to the Maester's Tower. Like she had guessed, music was being played in the Great Hall which made her journey a lot easier.

She grabbed her longsword with her right hand, ready to attack if necessary, and opened the door with her left. Except for a raven, this room was empty so Kaelyn guessed there were only guards installed down in the cellar.

"Shh" she hushed when she passed the raven, hoping he wouldn't make any sounds. _Darned creatures_.

Swiftly she made her way down the stairs. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the guards standing on each side of the door opening into the cellar. Kaelyn didn't know why she was surprised, as she already guessed they would be there.

"Ramsay asked me to check up on him" she lied. She tried to deepen her voice as much as she could without it sounding fake. Luckily, the only light in the room was coming from a torch behind her, leaving her face in the dark.

"Why?" the left guard questioned. "I did not hear such order."

"He wanted to see if he might tell me something. I'll play nice on him, winning his trust and then maybe he'll tell us something we can use against us" Kaelyn had know idea what she was telling the guards, as she was making it up on the spot, but it seemed to work. The guards stepped aside.

"Good luck" the right guard said.

"Don't enter the cellar while I'm busy, you might blow my cover" Kaelyn had to conceal her smile because it was all quite ironic. Her cover would really be blown if the guards entered the room. There was nothing to do now but to hope they indeed would not enter.

The doors opened and Kaelyn got to see the damage for herself.

There he was, her poor kraken hanging on a cross, dazed and confused. She closed the doors again and waited a few seconds before rushing towards him.

It was clear that Ramsay Snow had tried to recreate their house sigil by tying Theon to the cross. His head was covered with the same black hood he had on when they carried him away and he was bare-chested. She noticed the deep wound in his left food and the cuts all over his chest.

She stopped a few feet in front of him and she approached him slowly. His breathing started to get more heavy with each step she took closer to him. She could see he was scared of whatever was approaching him now.

_Be strong now, be strong for him._

Kaelyn pulled the hood of his head and the first thing she noticed was the fear in his eyes. She placed her finger on his lips to silence him as she removed her helmet, revealing herself. "It's me" she said.

"Did he send you? Did you hurt you as well?" Theon asked, panic dripping off every word he spoke.

Kaelyn shook her head. "Stop talking, they can't find out I'm here" she started. "I will come back for you tomorrow morning, we have to get out of here. I know a passageway out of the castle, we can go to the Wall and we'll be safe."

"No, no, please don't leave me here alone."

She felt her eyes filling with tears as with every word he said. _Be strong, be strong like Maester Luwin was strong._

Retrieving a flask hanging from her hip, Kaelyn put it to his lips and let him drink some of the water. By the looks of it he was dehydrated and that wound on his foot needed to be tended to. Only that had to wait until they were clear from the castle.

"I'll come back for you tomorrow. I promise, Theon. I won't leave without you."

She stroked his face with her hand, dreading the fact that she had to put the hood back on.

"Please, stay Kaelyn stay, don't leave me here" he pleaded.

Kaelyn took in a deep breath as she put the hood back on, fighting back her tears. "I have to, Theon. I have to leave you. Wait for me on the morrow, I'll come for you. I _promise_."

"No, no. Please, please."

She exhaled, wiped her tears away and put her helmet back on. If she could take him with her right now, she would, but there was still so much to prepare for. She had to distract Ramsay so they could leave the castle unseen, she had to make sure they could not follow her. And the worst part was, she had no idea where to start or what to do.

The door opened for her and Kaelyn left the cellar, leaving Theon behind on the cross.

"No luck" she said to the guards.

* * *

**A/N: So, I know Theon is actually at the Dreadfort originally, but I couldn't really think of a way how Kaelyn was going to get there, so I made Theon stay in Winterfell. Hopefully you don't mind the change. Thank you for reading! **


	10. Fire

**FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA  
**_Fire_

Kaelyn had spend the whole night thinking of a plan for the following day. Firstly she was going to give Theon water and food and then she was going to distract Ramsay so he did not see them escape. It was not a crazy plan, it could very well work, but if it would not work, the consequences would be great.

It was raining when Kaelyn stepped outside in the morning air. The courtyard was deserted and to her surprise there weren't any guards at the Maester's Tower. When she opened the door to the cellar she found out why: Theon was gone.

The cross was empty and only his black hood and the ropes that were tied around his hands and feet were left behind.

Her heart dropped and her mouth fell open. _Am I dreaming?_ Kaelyn tried to pinch herself and it hurt, indicating this was indeed real life.

She looked around the room one more time, but it was completely empty. Kaelyn started to panic, if Theon was not here, where was he? She had to find out.

Returning to the courtyard, Kaelyn found a group of soldiers, laughing while drinking ale and wine from their skins. She approached them from behind, her back towards the sun, and asked them in her most convincing manly-voice where Theon was. While she spoke, she could feel her heart starting to pound louder and louder.

"He'll be back soon" one soldier laughed. "He and Ramsay went on a little ride."

_Ride?_ Kaelyn did not understand what he meant but by the looks of it, Ramsay got to him before she could. Why could nothing ever go according to plan?

Kaelyn nodded and turned around again, her right hand on the sword hanging from her hip. Luckily the men went straight back to drinking and laughing and she was able to walk away without any problems.

There was only one thing left to do. Wait. Wait for his return and hope he'd return in one piece.

* * *

Kaelyn had hid herself in one of the towers on the walls of Winterfell. Here she had a perfect view of the surrounding areas. To be safe, she did not lit a torch, no one could know she was up here.

The waiting was long and boring, and Kaelyn found herself drifting asleep a few times. She could not remember the last time she had slept and it started to take its toll on her. Sadly there was no time for sleeping, she had to be able to act immediately once she spotted him.

She guessed she had been there for at least half a day when she finally spotted faint lights in the far distance. _This is it, that's him._ Kaelyn shot up and closed her eyes a little so she could see better. There were only two horses, one for Ramsay and one for Theon. There was no doubt it was him.

Kaelyn quickly descended the stairs of the tower and went to the castle to prepare for their escape.

* * *

She watched them from opposite of the yard as they put their horses back in the stables. From the looks of it, Theon had not been hurt and she wondered why he wasn't tied up. He was a prisoner was he not? In fact, he actually did not look too bad as Ramsay led him out of the stables back to the castle.

Theon and Ramsay entered the Maester's Tower, the same place where they were holding Theon earlier. Why did he go with him? Kaelyn thought. Why isn't he running away? There were so many questions, but she did not have any time to question Ramsay's motives. There was only one thing she could do: prepare and wait for their escape tonight.

Kaelyn pulled her helmet further over her eyes and made sure her hair was still safely secured inside before she stepped out on the yard again. She still was in need of some supplies for her plan and the only place she knew she could find them was inside of the Maester's Tower, but obviously she could not enter the tower, not with Ramsay inside.

She knew she borrowed some vials from Maester Luwin to study, some of them could perhaps be of help. Kaelyn turned to her home. When she opened the unlocked door, she expected to see her mother standing behind the cooker preparing another delicious dinner while her little sister was sewing away, but the house was empty. It made her wonder where her mother and sister were. She could only hope they were safe.

By the looks of it her whole house had been raided empty. All the pots and pans were gone, and even one of the chairs was missing. Her room shared the same fate. The vials were all gone as were the furs that had once laid on her bed. Seeing the house in this state made her sad. Winterfell would never be the same.

Kaelyn sat down on her bed, staring at the emptiness all around her. She closed her eyes and dreamed of the Wolfswood where she had trained with Theon. She dreamed of the needlework she gave to him. She dreamed of the bow he had given to her.

Her eyes opened. _Of course! The bow he had given to me!_ Kaelyn had been searching for a bow for quite some time now, but most of Bolton's men seemed to fight with a sword. She moved off the bed and started to push it from the wall. She had to hide it from her father and to be honest she had completely forgotten all about it. But luckily, the bow was still there.

Kaelyn carefully took the bows in her hand. It was as beautiful as she remembered. She couldn't believe she had not thought of this before. After taking the bow and arrows, she pushed the bed back. Even though she did not find the vials, the bow made up for it.

Clutching the bow tightly to her chest, Kaelyn stepped out on the yard. She had decided to hide in Sansa's chamber again and wait until nightfall to execute her plan. She hoped the men would all be drunk again by then and their escape could come easy.

_Please let us escape. Let us escape and let us not be found_. Kaelyn prayed to the old gods, the new gods, to every god that would listen. They had to escape tonight or they could not escape at all.

* * *

The castle was gloomy in the dark. It was lit by just a few torches and Kaelyn had a hard time seeing everything as she had not taken hers. She wanted to draw as little attention to herself as possible. The courtyard was empty as the soldiers were drinking again, just as Kaelyn expected. She couldn't blame them. No one was attempting to retake Winterfell so they could do what they liked.

The stables were just as dark as the rest of the castle, but still Kaelyn double checked if there really wasn't anyone present. The light of the moon shone through the windows, revealing no one present but the horses. Kaelyn ignored the animals, it was their saddles she wanted.

The saddles were stored in an outbuilding attached to the stables and luckily, the door leading to it was unlocked. _Stupid of them,_ Kaelyn thought. There were more saddles than horses, but still Kaelyn meant to disable them all. Because of the war, horses were getting scarcer and scarcer, a lot of them had been a victim to the violence all around them. Kaelyn pitied them. They went into battle not knowing what was happening to them. Why this was happening to them.

She slipped a dagger from underneath her cloak and started working on the first saddle. She thought if she disabled the saddles, the soldier would be unable to ride their horses. Well, some of them could ride their horse as easily without a saddle as with, but there were only a few who could do that. With little effort, the stirrup leather was cut through. Kaelyn nodded in content. This was working as well as she had imagined it.

Few minutes later, the soldiers could no longer use their saddle. Now it was time to get out of there and work on the second phase of her plan. After she had to wait all day, her imagination had taken over and she had come up with all kinds of plans, but in the end she had settled on one.

She crossed the courtyard back to the castle, lighting a torch on the way, she was going to need it later on. For a moment she stopped in front of the great hall, watching the men entertaining themselves with ale, wine and women. Even though she disapproved of the way they handled women, there was nothing she could do about it now.

With her bow safely on her back, Kaelyn shuffled down the hallway towards Lord Eddard and Lady Catelyn's old chambers. As it was easily the biggest and most beautiful chamber of the whole castle, Kaelyn figured it was were Ramsay stayed. And if not, her plan would still work.

Kaelyn held her breath as she went around the corner. There was someone at the end of the hallway. She wasn't planning on killing anyone, but if she had to, she would. Keeping her eyes focused on the ground she passed the soldier, nodding once as she passed him. She only dared to breath when the soldier was well out of sight.

She now rushed towards the chamber, the torch still in her hand. She had left her sword at her house, she was not going to use it anyway and it would only be in the way. Once the door was opened, it became clear that indeed someone was staying here. There were clothes scattered around the chamber and there were furs on the bed.

Kaelyn picked up the clothes and put it on the furs on the bed. She also pulled the curtains off the wall and put it on the pile as well. Lastly, she located a bottle of wine on a cabinet. Before pouring it over the pile, she smelled it, but she knew too little of wine to tell were it was from. _The Arbor? Dorne?_

Because she had to be quick, she already opened the door so she could leave as quick as she could. The only thing left to do was setting the pile on fire. Kaelyn dropped the torch into the pill and because of the alcohol in the wine, it caught fire easily.

There was no time to admire her work, she had to go. This was the only distraction she had. Kaelyn took a different route back, she figured she was less likely to run into any soldier if she took another route. Against her luck, she did encounter one Bolton bannerman, but she quickly by passed him by saying: "There's a fire! Fire in the castle!"

Once she was in the courtyard again, she saw that the fire had spread quickly. _Perfect_, Kaelyn thought when she saw all the drunk bannermen rushing towards the chamber, trying to put out the fire with buckets of water and blankets.

Kaelyn herself rushed in the opposite direction, towards the Maester's Tower. She took her bow in her hands and put an arrow inside of it, ready to strike if necessary. It had been a while since she had held a bow, but she still felt confident with it.

She pushed the door open. The room was empty except for a raven sitting on top of the wooden table. _Corn_, it cawed. _Corn, corn._ Kaelyn ignored the bird, afraid it was going to make more noise if she paid it any attention. As soft as she could she descended the stairs, her bow still in her hands.

"What's going on up there?"

"Don't know. Do you want me to have a look?"

Her heart started to pound faster with each step she took. Just a few more steps before she reached the ground.

"Come back when you've figured out what's happening. Ramsay ordered us to stay here all night."

The guard spotted her too late. Kaelyn had already fired an arrow straight through his heart. The man looked down at the arrow, before looking up, a dazed look on his face. It wasn't long before he coughed up blood and fell down.

That caught the attention of the other guard. She had to act fast or everything would be for nothing. _Hips, arms, fingers_, Theon once told her. Kaelyn turned her hips sideways, lifted her arms and loosened her fingers. The second arrow missed his heart, but still penetrated his body. To be safe she fired another, and another. The guard fell down on the ground. He tried to say something but nothing but blood came out of his mouth.

Before continuing Kaelyn took a deep breath. There was no time to process the fact that she had just killed two men, she had to focus on Theon.

She found him hanging on the same cross he had hung on before. It confused her, as she saw Ramsay and Theon walking across the yard like they just had been on a stroll down the Wolfswood. It was another warning to her they had to get out of here as soon as possible.

Unlike last time she saw him, he was not hooded. He moved restless as she approached him.

"No, please!" he said. Kaelyn heart broke into a million pieces upon hearing his voice. She doubted she had ever heart someone so scared.

"Shh" she hushed as she revealed herself and threw her bow on the ground. "It's me. We are getting out of here."

"Kaelyn? You came back? No, go away. What if Ramsay finds us?" Theon mumbled.

"He won't" Kaelyn assured him.

Once she got closer to him, she gasped. His right hand only counted four fingers. Where his ring finger once had been, only a cloth stained with blood remained.

_I can't let this affect me. We have to go now. If I remain in one place too long, they will find us._

"Lean on me" she told him as she untied his hands and feet. She noticed the wound in his left foot was started to get infected.

She supported him with her right arm as she picked up her bow with her right. Slowly, but as fast as they could, they moved towards the stairs.

"We can't go up there" Theon told her, squeezing her shoulder. "They will find us."

There was a chance they would be seen. Kaelyn hoped the fire would still have all their attention so they could back their way through the castle without being seen.

"I started a fire, they will be busy with putting it out" she said, breathing heavily.

First she went up the stairs by herself, checking if it was safe to cross. Once she made sure that it indeed was safe, she went down again to help Theon up the stairs. She could not imagine how much his feet and finger were hurting. _I have to treat it, otherwise he also might loose his foot_.

When they reached the top, Kaelyn grabbed one of the woolen blankets laying around and wrapped Theon in it. It would not only conceal him, but also keep him warm against the cold winds of winter.

"It will be okay" she told him once more. "We will be out of here and we will be safe."

Theon nodded but she could still see the doubt in his eyes.

When they stepped out upon the courtyard, Kaelyn started to doubt as well. There were more people running around than she expected. They were busy with the fire, but they could still be seen.

"Get more water!" she heard one yell.

"Sand! Bring up bags of sand!" another one yelled.

They started to move across the yard, staying mostly in the dark. Kaelyn pushed Theon's head down a bit, so his face was covered in shadows. Glancing to her left, she noticed how the fire had spread. Not only the tower was on fire, but it seemed like the whole hallway was lit up in flames.

Like she had hoped, all the men seemed to be occupied with putting out the fire and they made it across the yard without anyone paying attention to her. If they didn't put out the fire quickly, the whole castle would burn down.

"This way" she said, grabbing Theon's hand, leading him inside the part of the castle that wasn't lit up yet.

The scared look in Theon's eyes made her scared as well. She wasn't scared of what was going to happen, she was scared of what was happening with him. Ramsay broke him. He broke him emotionally and physically.

Kaelyn pushed her feelings away as they made their way down to Sansa's chamber. They were getting closer to their escape. Closer to getting out of this living hell. Kaelyn had no idea where they were going to go once they left the castle, but as long as they were together it did not matter.

"You shouldn't go there. The fire has spread."

The voice came from behind her. Kaelyn turned around and stepped in front of Theon. If he recognized him they would be back to square one and everything would have been for nothing.

"We are bringing water to the chambers to stop it from spreading" Kaelyn made up, deepening her voice. She still had her helmet on, but some of her hair had fallen out of it.

"Where are your buckets?" the bannerman asked frowning.

"We left them behind. They were heavy and we first wanted to check the scale of the fire."

She felt Theon trying to move away from her to stand beside her so she quickly moved in front of him again.

The bannerman waited for a moment to reply, which didn't sit well with Kaelyn. She knew he knew that something was going on. There was only one way of getting out of this situation alive.

Kaelyn stepped forward and retrieved her dagger she had stolen and stabbed the man multiple times. She knew that slitting his throat would be quicker and more efficient, but for some reason she could not do that. So much blood had flown the past few days, she wanted to see as little of it as possible.

The man looked down at his stomach and fell down.

"We have to go, now" Kaelyn urged.

They ran down the hallway towards Sansa's chamber. The fire indeed had spread as she felt the heat of it on her skin growing stronger with each step they took.

The door was unlocked and the chamber was empty. She noticed how Theon limped towards her after he closed the door.

"Can you go on? We can rest for a moment if you want" she asked him.

"No" Theon replied.

Kaelyn nodded and traced the outline of the fireplace to find the lever that opened it. She found it much easier this time and the backside opened up, revealing the same passageway her mother and sister had escaped through.

"Let's go."

She let Theon go through first. Before closing the fireplace she looked around the chamber once more, realizing this would be the last time she would ever be in Winterfell. However it didn't matter anymore. Winterfell hadn't been a home to her for a long time now and Kaelyn could not wait for the moment when she found a new home with Theon. A home where they would be safe, safe and sound.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait! I had my finals and I'm happy to let you know that I passed and I will be graduating from high school, yay! Sadly, GoT has ended so we have to wait another whole year for more Theon :( Enjoy reading and review! :D **


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